Mingling With the Snyder's
by raspberry truffles
Summary: This is a continuation of In the Bedroom. This is my attempt at fan fiction featuring Reid and Luke.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer

These are not my character's no infringement intended.

Luke and Reid lay together in Luke's bed for half an hour. Reid was so happy just to be able to hold Luke. The blonde one had finally seemed to relax and Reid thought that he might fall asleep. Just then Luke rolled over and started kissing Reid. Reid felt like his head might explode. Does it get any better than this?

Just as suddenly as Luke had started kissing Reid he stopped. "Did I do something wrong, Luke" asked Reid.

"No, I love kissing you but I think that we need to go downstairs and get some food before you pass out or someone comes looking for us." Luke replied with one of his beautiful smiles that made Reid go weak in the knees.

"OK, hey Luke, I was thinking that maybe you could go down and just bring up a plate for me so that we could hang out alone. What do you think?" asked Reid.

"No way are you hiding up here. I want you to meet my family. So suck it up buttercup you are going to have to mingle." Luke smiled at the look on Reid's face. Reid looked so miserable and so cute at the same time.

"The food had better be really good Snyder, or else…" Reid said warningly.

Luke just smiled at Reid. "Don't worry we can go for a walk if the company gets too much for you. I'll look after you." Luke said warmly.

"You better." Reid replied, but he was happy that Luke wanted him to meet Luke's family. That had to mean that Luke cared about him.

As the boys came downstairs Lily called out "oh there you are Luke. I was about to come upstairs and look for you."

Luke smirked at Reid knowingly.

"Uh Dr. Oliver, I didn't know you were coming. Where's Noah? Did you see him Luke? I want to make sure that he gets something to eat." Lily said.

"Noah left, Mom" Luke sighed. He could feel Reid tensing up beside him.

"Noah left?" Lily said incredulously. Then she turned to Reid and said "What did you say to Noah? Did you make him feel uncomfortable? Noah is part of this family and I won't have you make him feel unwelcome." Lily glared at Reid.

Luke grabbed Reid's hand to make him feel better and glared at his mother. "Mom, this isn't Reid's fault. Noah and I have broken up! Why can't anyone remember that? Noah pushed me away. I don't want to be with him anymore. Come on Reid let's go get some food."

"That sounds great to me!" Reid beamed at Luke. He was sure that the blonde was more upset about Lily's words that he was. He was thrilled to hear Luke say that he didn't want to be with Noah anymore.

The boys gathered their food and then went outside to eat. Luke didn't want to be around his family right then especially his mother.

"I'm sorry that my mother was so rude to you Reid." Luke began. "She really is a great person once you get to know her.

"Don't worry about it Luke. I'm fine, really. I know that this break-up with Noah is hard on you and it obviously is a big change for your whole family. I am not the easiest guy to like, I know that but I will make an effort to get along with your mom and the rest of your family." Reid smiled at Luke.

"Thanks Reid" Luke said and then leaned over to kiss him.

In the house Lily was watching the boys and saw Luke kiss Reid. "Oh my god, Luke is kissing that horrible Dr. Oliver! How is he ever going to get Noah back if he keeps kissing Reid? Holden, Holden you have to do something!" Lily said agitatedly.

"What do you want me to do Lily? Go out there and make them stop kissing? Luke says that he doesn't want to be with Noah anymore and I think that we need to respect that." Holden replied.

"What are you talking about? Noah and Luke are great together. They have true love; I want them to be together forever! What's wrong with you that you don't want Luke to be happy?" ranted Lily.

"Lily, listen to yourself. This is not about you, this is about Luke. Please don't make him feel guilty about his break-up with Noah, or his new relationship with Reid. Reid seems to care about Luke. Did you see the way that he looked at Luke when Luke told you that he didn't want to be with Noah anymore? Luke seems to be more confident with Reid than he ever was with Noah and I think that that is a good thing for Luke." Holden said trying to calm Lily down.

"But Dr. Oliver is so rude and cold. Even Luke admits that. I don't want Luke to be with someone so snarky. Noah was always so nice and polite. I really love Noah." Lily whined.

"Lily this is not about you!" Holden said he was really getting exasperated with her. "He hasn't said that he's marrying Reid, so don't panic and do try to be supportive." Holden encouraged.

"Oh alright, but I can't promise not to root for Noah." Lily added, somewhat defeated.

The boys had finished eating, but Luke still didn't feel like being around his family. "Do you want to go for a walk with me?" he asked Reid.

"Sure, that would be great." Reid replied.

"Let's put our dishes in the kitchen and then head out." Luke suggested.

"That sounds good to me." Reid answered. He couldn't believe how lucky he had been to avoid all that dreadful small talk that usually occurs at dinner parties. He knew that Luke was upset about his mother's outburst so he tried not to let on how relieved he was just to spend time with Luke. Reid also knew that Lily probably had no idea that she had done him a big favour.

When the boys had put their plates away they went back into the living room to say their goodbyes.

Reid thanked Lily for dinner and she managed to be civil back to him.

Holden stepped up and shook Reid's hand and thanked him for coming. "I'm really glad that you were able to come tonight Dr. Oliver. I hope that we get to see you again soon" he said warmly.

"Thanks Mr. Snyder" he said, unexpectedly touched by Holden's kindness "and you can call me Reid."

"Thanks Reid and you can call me Holden."

Luke was smiling again, happy that at least his dad was welcoming to Reid.

"Come on Reid lets get going. Good night mom. Goodnight Dad I'll see you soon." Luke said and the boys were off.


	2. Chapter 2

The boys got into Luke's car and headed for the Snyder pond to go for a walk. They sat silently, though not uncomfortably in the car. It was a short drive and soon Luke was parking the car.

"So this is the famous Snyder pond," remarked Reid. He was suddenly nervous to be alone with Luke. It had been a strange evening full of emotion and he wasn't sure what it all meant. He felt like a nervous school boy and he hated it.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Luke concurred. He was feeling pensive and confused and not sure of how Reid was feeling. He couldn't believe that his mother had thrown Noah in Reid's face. Like that was going to help him with anything. If Mom likes Noah so much she can date him! Luke chuckled at the image of his mom and Noah as a couple. EW!

Reid hoped that Luke wasn't laughing at him. "What's so funny," he asked Luke nervously.

"Nothing," Luke quickly replied not realizing that he had laughed out loud.

"Why are you blushing Luke? Are you laughing at me?" Reid asked furiously thinking why am I here? I am a moron. Luke probably still loves Noah.

"No, I'm not laughing at you, I promise. I'm blushing because I'm embarrassed at how my mom treated you. I was just thinking that if she likes Noah so much then maybe she should date him. I was laughing because that would add a whole new dimension of dysfunction to my family." Luke answered not able to look at Reid as he did so.

"Geez Luke is Noah going to permeate all of our conversations from now on?" Reid asked. He knew he was whining, but come on he was sick of Noah, Noah, Noah!

"I'm sorry Reid I'm not trying to think about him I am just upset with my mom's behaviour. You are really important to me but so is my family. I just wanted everybody to accept you so that it would be easier for me to move on." Luke tried to explain.

"Luke, I told you earlier that your mom's words didn't hurt me. Your opinion is the only one that really matters to me. I would never ask you to choose between me and your family. That's crazy. I will make an effort to get along with your family and if your mom never likes me, well then I will stay out of her way. I will do whatever you want. The only person that I need you to choose me over is Noah, but I'm not sure that you are ready to do that, or if you ever will be ready." Reid said softly.

Reid couldn't help it he started to babble about his feelings. "I hate this Luke, I feel so exposed. I like you and I want you to like me. I want you to be sick of Noah and make him disappear from our lives. Then I feel guilty because I know that Noah is important to you and so should be important to me. I want you all the time. Every time you are close to me I want to touch you and kiss you and be alone with you. God Luke, I don't know how you feel or what you want, all you ever say is I don't know, I love Noah or I've got to go be with Noah. You are killing me Luke."

Reid took a breath. "Oh my god did I just say that all out loud? Kill me now, just shoot me and put me out of my misery please, I just want to die."

Reid finally dared to look at Luke who was smiling and crying at the same time. Luke came over and put his arms around Reid, who really did look so hurt and so lost. It broke Luke's heart. He did the only thing that he could think to do. Luke wrapped his arms around Reid and started kissing him. Reid clung to Luke and kissed him back with all of the emotion that was running through his body.

When they finally broke apart Reid said "I want to take you home with me. Please Luke; I need to be with you now."

Luke smiled sadly and said "I think that we need to talk first. You asked me a lot of questions and I think that we both need some answers before we take this to the next level."

Reid agreed reluctantly and grabbed Luke's hand as the two headed out for a walk around the pond.

"So," Luke began as the boys rounded the first corner "You want to know how I feel about you, don't you?"

"Yes, I do" Reid replied, a little concerned about what he might here.

"I really care about you Reid, but you scare me and you challenge me and you make me want to be a better person."

Reid was shocked, "I scare you? What do you mean? All I've done is tell you that I have feelings for you. You scare me Luke Snyder, I'm constantly afraid that you are going to run back to Noah as soon as I have completely given myself to you. My god Luke you have me babbling like an idiot. I have no control around you, I am constantly terrified of you and now you tell me that I scare you. Ho w is that possible?"

Luke was smiling at Reid now, god he loved it when Reid babbled. It was so out of character for him that it made Reid that much more human. Luke was only sorry that the babbling made Reid feel so badly.

"First of all I am not going back to Noah, ever. Even if you dump my ass tomorrow I will not go back to him. I really don't want to cut him out of my life completely, because he has meant a lot to me, and I want to remember the good times. I want to be with you Reid, only you. Noah is my past, I realize now that our relationship had become very dysfunctional, and I don't like who I am around him. He makes me feel insecure and badly about myself. He makes me feel like a loser. You make me feel confident. Even when you snark at me you still seem to respect me, and I don't want to lose that. You scare me because you are so amazing, and so successful and so confident almost all of the time. I am afraid that I don't deserve you Reid. Honestly, you could do much better than me. I'm worried that you're going to realize that and kick me to the curb." Luke explained.

Reid pulled Luke close and started kissing him like crazy! God he loved kissing the blonde beauty. He couldn't imagine a time when he didn't want to be with him. He was so relieved to hear that Luke was finally ready to be done with Noah, he could live with Luke being friends with Noah.

Reid pulled away from Luke unwillingly and whispered, "Luke you do deserve to be with me. You are an amazing man. I don't know why you would feel undeserving of me. I have many flaws which I hope you will tolerate. Now will you please come home with me? I am freezing my ass off out here and I don't want to stop kissing you, but I also don't want to get frost bite."


	3. Chapter 3

The boys got back into Luke's car. "So are you sure Katie won't mind me coming over?" Luke asked nervously.

"Katie won't mind especially since she and Jacob won't be there. Katie had to go on location for WOAK and she took Jacob with her." Reid replied.

"So, uh, we're going to have the place to ourselves?" Luke asked nervously.

"Yeah, I can't wait!" Reid smiled at Luke.

Luke stared straight ahead, with a million thoughts going through his mind. What was he going to do? What if he disappointed Reid? Oh my god I am freaking out! He stole a glance at Reid who was looking at him quizzically. Oh my god he knows! I am in big trouble.

Reid thought, oh my god what is wrong with Luke. He looks terrified. Why is he afraid? Oh my god has he changed his mind already? What am I going to do? He reached over and touched Luke's thigh to reassure himself and Luke. Big Mistake. Luke flinched and looked terrified. Oh my god what is going on?

Oh my god Reid just touched my thigh and I flinched. I have got to get it together! Reid looks really mad. How am I going to get out of this? Oh no we're here what do I do now?

Luke parked the car and looked at Reid. "Well here we are," he said in desperate need to fill the silence.

Reid just stared at Luke blankly. "Do you want to come in Luke or are you going to run away?" he asked coldly.

"Uh… I'd like to come in," he responded nervously.

"Fine" Reid sighed. He didn't know what was going to happen next, but he wasn't sure that he was going to enjoy it.

They walked into the house in silence. Reid was starving as usual so he asked Luke if he wanted something to eat. Luke just stared at Reid incredulously and shook his head.

"Well I'm starving so I'm going to make myself a sandwich. Let me know if you change your mind."

"Reid, I'm still full from dinner, but thanks anyway." Luke replied. Luke could not think of anything less appealing than one of Reid's disgusting sandwiches at the best of times, but now when he was so nervous he was having trouble not gagging just looking at Reid's sandwich. How can he eat those? Gross!

Reid was happy to have something to do and Luke seemed to be calming down now that the food had come out. He couldn't believe that Luke wasn't hungry. What does that feel like he wondered to himself.

As soon as was finished making his snack he sat down at the table with Luke. "OK Luke it's time for you to spill your guts."

Immediately Luke tensed up and said "What are you talking about?" nervously.

"Luke you have been tying yourself in knots since we got back in your car to come here, so you need to tell me what is going on. I am not good at guessing or figuring out other people's feelings, I can barely comprehend my own, so you have to tell me why you are freaking out."

Luke blushed a million colours and looked away from Reid. Oh my god I am going to have to tell him. How am I going to get the words out? Should I tell him I have to go? No if I do that he'll never speak to me again. Oh god I'm just going to have to man up and tell him.

"I'm waiting, and I'm not very patient." Reid stated.

"I don't know how to tell you Reid. This is really embarrassing and you will probably kick me out after I tell you." Luke replied sadly.

Reid just stared at Luke wondering what it could be. Was it a medical problem? Was Luke not fully ah equipped? "Luke I'm a doctor, I can take it, whatever it is…if it's a medical problem perhaps I can recommend a specialist." Reid said with concern.

Luke jumped up, beet red and stammered "God Reid it's not a medical problem, I am not deformed in any way. Why would you think that? Do I look weird?" Luke wondered. This is getting worse by the second. How could he think that I needed medical attention?

"Well that's a relief" Reid said trying to calm Luke down. "No you don't look weird; you are the most beautiful man I have ever seen. Please just tell me okay it can't be that bad."

Luke sighed "I know that I am not beautiful, but thanks for saying that Reid. I will tell you but can we go into your room. I can't tell you if you are looking at me."

"Sure Luke lets go." Reid replied thinking things were looking up. At least they were heading to bed.

The boys went into Reid's room and Luke immediately took of his pants and got into bed. Reid was surprised but followed suit.

"Uh Reid, can you please turn out the lights, this is going to be awkward enough, I don't think that I can tell you unless we are in darkness.

"Sure Luke whatever makes it easier for you." Reid replied nervously. What could Luke possibly have to confess? Do I really want to know? Who am I kidding I am dying to know what the blonde one has to tell me.

Reid quickly turned out the lights and crawled into bed with Luke. True confessions here we come he thought to himself.

Luke was quiet and had his back turned to Reid so Reid tentatively reached out and started rubbing Luke's back gently.

Luke moaned softly enjoying Reid's touch and finally starting to relax.

Luke still wasn't talking so Reid whispered "You can tell me anything Luke, I promise not to judge you, I just want you to be happy."

Luke smiled in the darkness reassured not only by the words but also by the gentle tone that Reid used when saying them. Luke took in a deep breath and began to confess. "I'm not good in bed" he finally whispered in a strangled voice.

Reid was so shocked by Luke's words that he was speechless, but only for a second. "What are you talking about Luke? That's not even remotely possible. Do you not like sex? I'm sorry but you are going to have to explain this to me. There is no way that you are not good in bed Luke. You are way to sexy and way to responsive when we kiss to be anything less than absolutely spectacular." What had Noah done to Luke?

"Thank-you for saying that Reid, but I am afraid you are wrong. Noah never wanted to have sex with me. I always had to beg him for it. God, it took me two years to convince him to have sex with me in the first place. So how desirable can I possibly be? That's why I was so shocked when you kissed me in Dallas, and when you said that you had wanted to kiss me for a long time I practically swooned. You are the only person who has really been attracted to me, even though I don't really understand why."

Reid could not believe what he was hearing. He wanted to kill Noah. How could he make sexy, beautiful Luke feel undesirable? Reid immediately turned on the lights and grabbed Luke's face gently. "Luke, have you looked in a mirror, ever? You are incredibly beautiful, sexy and hot! I am not the first man to be attracted to you. You have no idea how sexy you are. I can't believe Noah has made you doubt yourself. Two years? I wanted to have sex with you the second time we met. When you came to the door in your towel in Dallas I thought I was going to have to take you right there. I'm still not sure how I managed to resist you. Did you not notice that I had to keep my briefcase in front of my pants as we left your room? You turn me on all the time. I am constantly aroused these days and it's driving me crazy. I feel like a hormone ravaged teenager. How can you not know how sexy you are?

Luke blinked back his tears. He couldn't believe that he had this affect on Reid. God it felt incredible to feel wanted, especially by someone as sexy as Reid. So Luke gave in and started kissing Reid. He could feel Reid respond immediately and so Luke relaxed and let go of some of his insecurities. Luke pulled away for a second and asked Reid to turn out the lights.

"No way," Reid answered. "I want to look at you and enjoy you while I make love to you. Please don't take that pleasure away from me."

"I don't think I am going to be able to deny you anything Reid." Luke sighed contentedly "Thank-you Reid." Luke whispered as the boys started to explore each other. Luke had never felt more cherished or safe.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning the boys woke up with smiles on their faces. Luke had never experienced anything like it. He was bursting with happiness. Seeing Luke so happy Reid could barely contain his own feelings, "Well we didn't wait two years but I definitely think that was worth it., don't you?"

"God yeah" smiled Luke. "You are amazing; I have never felt anything like that before."

"Me either" whispered Reid. "I knew that you would be fantastic in bed and you definitely are!"

Luke wasn't entirely convinced. "Are you sure that I didn't disappoint you? I really wanted to please you."

Reid gazed at Luke wanting to say the right thing to reassure him. He was deeply saddened that Luke felt insecure. "Luke, I have been with a fair number of men before you and I can honestly say that being with you was the most magical experience of my life…so far. Let's see if we can top it!" he said with a leer.

Luke couldn't believe his luck and he leaned over and grabbed Reid before Reid changed his mind. Reid loved Luke's enthusiasm and set about pleasing Luke and taking away all of his insecurities.

A few blissful hours later Reid's stomach demanded attention. "As happy as I am lying here with you I am starving. Do you want to go out for lunch with me?" Reid asked hopefully.

"Sure let's go to Al's." Luke suggested.

"Great idea, Luke, it's fast so we can eat and then come back here…if you want to." Reid added hopefully. He couldn't get enough of Luke and he hoped Luke felt the same about him.

Luke beamed his beautiful smile at Reid, "I was hoping that you would say that!"

Reid melted, but just a little, at Luke's words.

The boys quickly showered, Reid was really hungry, and got dressed.

A few minutes later Reid and Luke walked into Al's grinning and holding hands. They had that unmistakable look of two people who are completely blessed out on sex. Unfortunately, the first person they saw at Al's was Noah. He recognized the look and was not happy about it.

"How could you humiliate me like this Luke?" Noah snarled at him. "And you…"he hissed at Reid with so much venom that Reid flinched for a second.

"What is your problem?" Reid asked with a knowing smile.

Noah couldn't take it any more, so he hauled off and punched Reid squarely on the nose.

"What the hell are you doing, Noah? Are you okay Reid? What can I do to help you?" he asked Reid as his mind tried to sort out this latest drama.

"Why aren't you checking on me?" Noah whined. "This is all his fault." Noah said pointing accusingly at Reid.

"Are you insane, Noah? Just get the hell out and leave us alone." Luke yelled at Noah.

Noah stormed out of Al's looking like he wanted to kill somebody.

Luke turned all of his attention to Reid. "How is your nose? Do you think that it's broken?"

"Maybe, I think that I should go to the hospital and get it looked at. Will you take me there?"

""Of course I'll take you Reid. Let's go."

"Why couldn't Noah have punched me after we ate?" grumbled Reid.

"Poor baby, I'll make sure you get fed some time today." Luke smiled.

As soon as they were at the hospital Luke got Reid sorted and then took off to run an errand. Reid worried that Luke was going to confront Noah and Reid really wished that Luke would just stay with him. Of course he didn't say this to Luke he just worried as he saw the blonde retreat.

Luke, of course, was only going back to Al's to get some food for Reid. He ordered Reid two huge, somewhat disgusting in Luke's opinion, sandwiches and some chilli and cheese fries for himself. Once the food was ready he quickly headed back to the hospital to feed Reid.

Reid was shocked and pleased to see Luke walk in with food from Al's. He was relieved that Luke had been thinking about him rather than chasing after Noah.

"Thanks Luke these sandwiches are great." Reid said after giving Luke a quick kiss.

"No problem. How is your nose? Is it broken? Luke inquired anxiously.

"No, it's just bruised" Reid replied. "Noah has a really good right hook, I hope that I am not on the receiving end of it again."

Luke sighed, "I guess that I will have to go and talk to him. I really don't want to, but I don't want him beating you up either. What was he thinking?"

"I think that he is just beginning to realize what he has lost. I can't even say that I don't understand why is so upset about it. I would be devastated to see you with someone else." Reid admitted.

Luke kissed Reid tenderly on the lips and said "let's go home."

Reid was happy to comply.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N I am on ATWT time meaning I am not sure what time of day this is happening, but I wanted it all to be happening in one day. Thanks for all the feedback. I hope that you enjoy this chapter.

Noah couldn't believe that he had punched Reid. He simply wasn't that guy, but he did have to admit that it felt pretty great to wipe that self satisfied smirk off of the great Dr. Oliver's face. The nerve of that guy moving in on Luke, his Luke, Dr .Oliver had clearly taken advantage of Luke and now Noah was going to make sure that Reid didn't get away with it. What could he do? He needed an ally. Normally, he would have gone to Luke, but Luke was not an option now that he was under Reid's spell. God he hated Reid Oliver. Who could he turn to, who would want to help him rescue Luke? He thought for a moment and then a smile began to spread across his face. Lily, he thought, she's the one to help me. She knows that Luke and I belong together. Noah felt much better as he picked up the phone to arrange a meeting with Lily.

Lily could hear the stress in Noah's voice and immediately invited him over. Noah arrived 15 minutes later, relieved that Lily seemed anxious to help him.

"I'm just so worried about Luke," Noah began. "You know what a huge heart Luke has and I don't want Dr. Oliver to take advantage of it. Dr. Oliver has always been so mean to Luke and now all of a sudden he's making a move on Luke. Who does that? Why can't Luke see that Reid is just using him for uh… Reid's physical needs." Noah finished awkwardly.

"Well Noah, I know that Reid has told Luke that he has feelings for Luke." Lily said gently.

"Of course Reid is going to tell Luke he has feelings for him, I mean what else could he say? Do you really think that Reid is capable of feelings? He is always so rude and cold no matter whom he is talking to, including Luke. You know that I love Luke and I want to be with him and I just think that we need to break this hold that Reid has over him quickly. Luke is so sensitive and loving I really don't want to see him get burned. What if Luke gets his heart broken and then starts drinking again? I just want to protect Luke."

Lily never wanted Luke to start drinking again and she realized that this was a possibility. She knew that she would have to help Noah get rid of Dr. Oliver for Luke's sake.

"Noah you know that I love you and that I think that you and Luke belong together, forever. I think that you are right that we need to figure out a way to remove Reid from Luke's life. We can't just tell Luke to give him up or Luke will dig in his heels and become even more involved with Reid. No, we have to be above board so that Luke can see that what we are doing is in his best interest. Which, clearly we are." Lily said, in part to reassure herself.

"I think that what Dr. Oliver did was unethical. Surely doctors are not allowed to move in their patients significant others. I think that Reid would drop Luke if his medical license was in jeopardy of being revoked. Being a doctor is his whole identity. What do you think Lily? I could file a complaint today. After all, he may have done this before and we may save another patient's a lot of grief." Noah added, feeling altruistic with this solution.

"I think that that is a great idea Noah, after all Luke can't blame us for Reid's unethical behaviour. I think that he will be grateful when he realizes the damage that Reid has caused the two of you."

"Thank-you so much Lily, I feel better already. I am so glad that we are working together to save Luke." Noah quickly left to file his complaint with the medical board. This will really fix Reid. He'll probably have to leave Oakdale in a cloud of shame. Which is exactly what he deserves, Noah thought with a smirk.

Lily was truly worried about Luke. Thank God he has Noah to look out for his best interests.

Lily quickly called Luke to make sure that he was okay.

"Hi Mom" Luke said when he finally answered the phone.

"Are you okay, Luke? It took you a long time to answer the phone."

"I'm fine Mom" Luke smiled as he reached over to caress Reid's handsome face. "What's up, Mom? I'm kind of busy." Luke smiled knowingly at Reid. Reid responded by touching Luke's thigh. Reid used just enough pressure to make sure that Luke knew what was on his mind, but not too much so that Luke could keep talking to his mom.

"Look Luke, Noah was just here and he's really worried about you. He doesn't want you to get hurt by that dreadful Dr. Oliver." Lily said, a look of distaste crossing her face as she said Reid's name. "Noah loves you honey, you need to give him another chance." Lily pleaded.

Luke was furious. "Stay out of my personal life mom." Luke yelled. "I am with Reid now and I don't want to hear that Noah loves me. He has pushed me away too many times. Did Noah tell you that he nearly broke Reid's nose this morning when he saw us together? I bet he didn't mention that part. I care about Reid and Reid cares about me so either support me in this or stay out of it. I don't want you to try to convince me to go back to Noah."

"Luke, calm down. Clearly Reid is a bad influence on you. I guess I should warn you that Noah is reporting Reid to the medical board right now." Lily admitted, carefully leaving out that she had encouraged Noah to pursue this course of action.

"What?" Luke bellowed into his phone. "What is he reporting Reid for? Giving him back his sight? Helping Noah arrange funding for his surgery? For being attracted to me? What is his crime?" Reid was starting to panic now. What was Noah up to?

"Well um Noah is grateful to have his sight back, but he feels that Reid behaved unethically when he began a relationship with you when you were clearly Noah's partner. He feels that Reid may have done this before and he wants to protect all of Reid's future patients. Surely you can understand Noah's need to protect you and other people like you in the future." Lily tried to placate Luke, after all it had sounded so reasonable when she and Noah had discussed it earlier.

"Shut the hell up!" Luke roared into his phone and then hung up.

Luke turned to look at Reid with tears in his eyes. He noticed that Reid had gotten out of bed and quickly dressed.

"I am so sorry Reid. Noah has gone to the medical board to report you for misconduct with me. I will do whatever I can to help you out of this jam. I can't believe that you are being punished for caring about me. It is so unfair."

Reid could see how hurt and scared Luke was so he tried to reassure his blonde beauty. "Luke, please don't feel badly about this. This is not your fault. Noah is just acting like a spoiled brat. Like I said before, I can understand why he is so upset about losing you; I just don't know why he let you go in the first place. I'm not letting you go. I haven't done anything wrong so I am pretty confident that this will blow over." Reid leaned over and tenderly kissed Luke.

"I really don't deserve you." Luke said with a watery smile, "but I don't care I'm not giving you up either. Please let me know how to help you. I will talk to Noah and try to get him to see reason. I need to calm down first because right now I just want to kick his ass."

"I'm going to talk to Bob Hughes to see what course action he suggests that I take. Be careful when you talk to Noah, I don't want him hurting you with his words or with his fists."

"I'll be careful; I don't think that Noah would punch me. How would he explain my bruises to his new best friend Lily? Let me know what Bob says."

"Do you want to meet back here later? I could pick up some food from Al's for us. Or would you like to be alone so that you can avoid some of the Luke Snyder drama." Luke asked cautiously.

"Luke, I want to be with you. Drama and all! I'll call you when I am done with Bob so that we can sort out the specifics."

"Don't worry Luke; it's all going to be okay." Reid said and then leaned over to give Luke one last heartfelt kiss before they each left the comfort of Katie's and each other to face Bob and Noah respectively.


	6. Chapter 6

Reid quickly drove to the hospital wondering how Bob was going to react to this latest drama. I can't believe that medical board has had two complaints against me in less than six months. Despite his reassurances to Luke, Reid was really worried about his career.

Once at the hospital Reid immediately tracked down Bob. "I need to talk to you for a minute in private Dr. Hughes." Reid stated.

"Dr Hughes is it now, this must be important. Please come with me and we can talk in my office." Bob responded.

As soon as the two men were in Bob's office, Bob tried to put Reid at ease. "What seems to be the problem Dr. Oliver?"

Reid quickly filled Bob in on the Noah situation. Bob was shocked to find out that Reid and Luke were having a relationship and he could understand Noah's reaction to it. He needed to be objective so he probed Reid for more information.

"Reid, I am going to have to ask you some very personal questions and I need you to answer them without getting upset. I know that you are a very private man, but I feel that I need this information if I am going to be able to help you with the medical board." Bob warned Reid.

"I understand, I will answer all of your questions honestly, but I ask that you keep this information confidential." Reid requested. He didn't think that Bob would be gossiping about him, but it the confidentiality agreement made him feel slightly more comfortable.

"Agreed" said Bob understanding perfectly where Reid was coming from.

"When did you first become interested in Luke?" asked Bob.

"The second or third time I met with Luke." Reid replied.

"So you were attracted to Luke while he and Noah were still very much together." Bob stated.

"Yes" Reid admitted.

"Did you act on this attraction or let Luke know that you were interested in him personally?" asked Dr. Hughes.

"No, I was confused about my feelings and I knew that I couldn't act on them, so I was actively rude to Luke and asked Noah to keep Luke away from me." Reid answered honestly.

"When you asked Noah to keep Luke away from you were you trying to break them up? Bob inquired/

"No, I was shocked when Noah pushed Luke away. It was not my intention to keep them apart I just couldn't focus properly on Noah when Luke was around so I tried to eliminate that distraction. I really was thinking about my care of Noah." Reid explained.

"When did you let Luke know that you were interested in him? Bob asked.

"I kissed Luke when we were in Dallas together for my other hearing." Reid answered uncomfortably. "Just before we left for Dallas Luke and I saw Noah on a date at Al's with a man named Richard. Luke had told me weeks before that he and Noah had broken up, but I didn't act on my feelings because I was sure that they would get back together when Noah got his sight back. In fact, when Noah had a minor breakthrough with his vision I encouraged him to call Luke, and when he refused I let Luke know because I knew what it would mean to Luke and I thought that it would bring the two of them closer together."

"You broke doctor/client confidentiality Reid, you shouldn't have done that." Bob intoned.

"I know. I wasn't specific with Luke I just encouraged him to speak to Noah about his check-up. I rationalized my actions by telling myself that I wasn't so much breaking confidentiality as bending it a little." Reid explained.

"After seeing Noah and Richard together it was impossible for me to resist Luke when the opportunity presented itself." Reid continued awkwardly.

"I see and did this relationship continue when you returned to Oakdale?" Bob asked.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a relationship, but Luke knew that I had feelings for him. Noah had surgery shortly after we returned from Dallas and he asked Luke to be there for him. Luke, of course supported Noah through the surgery and the early days of his recovery."

"Did your feelings for Luke have any impact on Noah's surgery , or the unexpected complications that occurred?" Bob inquired.

"No, I don't think so. I know that I operated on Noah to the best of my ability and I thank God that he has recovered his sight and has not suffered any brain damage. I have to admit that I did second guess myself when things went south, but I honestly believe that my feelings for Luke played no role in Noah's surgery." Reid answered as honestly as he could.

"I know that you gave Noah excellent care as is evident by the results. When did Luke tell Noah about his feelings for you?" Bob asked.

"Luke didn't tell Noah anything about us. Luke came to me and said he wanted to tell Noah while Noah was still in the hospital, but I discouraged him because I didn't want Noah to push me away before he was strong enough to leave the hospital. I also really didn't know what Luke was going to tell Noah. We weren't really in a relationship; we were just really attracted to each other. Noah regained his sight and decided to come over to Luke's to surprise him and ended up seeing Luke and me kissing through the window." Reid answered feeling exposed and embarrassed.

Bob sighed, "Well I can certainly understand why Noah was upset by this, but I don't think that you have done anything unethical regarding Noah's care. Do you and Luke plan to continue your relationship?"

"Yes" Reid said simply, no longer denying that he and Luke had a relationship.

"Thank-you for coming to me before I heard about it from the board, I have to suspend you for five days with pay so that I can sort this out for you. I will keep you apprised of the situation. By the way, I am very happy for you Reid, Luke is a great guy." Bob smiled at the look of astonishment on Reid's face.

"Yes he is." Reid agreed "Thanks!"

Meanwhile Luke had tracked down Noah and invited him to the Lakeview so that they could talk. Noah was thrilled that Luke had called him and agreed to meet Luke right away.

"Hi Luke, thanks for calling. It's great to see you." Noah greeted Luke happily.

"Thanks for coming Noah," Luke said grimly. "I wanted to talk to you about Reid."

"Who cares about Reid, I forgive you Luke. I know that none of this was your fault. I love you."

Luke stared at Noah incredulously. What was Noah thinking? "Noah, I care about Reid. You and I are not together and Reid and I are. You can't go around punching Reid or anyone else who shows and interest in me. I don't know what you were thinking."

"You can't be serious Luke, That guy is just using you. Please come back to me, we belong together Luke. Everyone knows that, even your mom." Noah pleaded.

"Please leave my mom out of this conversation. I am furious with you for going to her about Reid in the first place. Please drop this ridiculous claim that you put before the medical board. This behaviour isn't like you Noah. You have to let this go. You have to let me go. You know that we haven't been happy for a long time; I want you to be a part of my life, but as a friend. My family loves you, I love you but I am not in love with you and if you are honest with yourself I think that you will have to admit that you are not in love with me either. What we had was a miracle and I know that it hurts now that it is over. It hurts me too, Noah. Please honour what we had together and be happy for me. Maybe you should call Richard. He's hot and he seems to be very interested in you."

"Wouldn't you be jealous at all if you saw me with Richard?" Noah asked disbelievingly.

"I was jealous when I saw you and Richard together at Al's and yes I would probably be jealous if I saw you with any other man. I want you to be happy Noah and I want you to want that for me. I am not willing to stay single so that you don't have to be jealous of me and I don't expect you to either." Luke said soberly. "My feelings for Reid don't diminish what I felt for you at all. You were and will always be an important chapter in my life, but it is time for me to move on. I would really like you to be okay with that."

"You are asking an awful lot of me Luke. I was devastated when I saw you kissing Reid. I could tell then that he was important to you and something inside me snapped. I guess I always thought that we were meant to be together no matter how often I pushed you away. I can't imagine being with anybody but you Luke. I don't quite know how to change that picture in my head." Noah lamented.

"I always thought that we would be together too. That's why I tried so hard to make the relationship work. In the end I was forcing it too much and I left you no choice but to push me away. I can see that now. Try calling Richard, even if you two aren't meant to be together I think that he will help you move on. I really want you to be happy Noah, and I know that there is someone out there who you will be happy with." Luke encouraged.

"You really are amazing Luke. I'm sorry that I didn't appreciate you as much as I should have when we were together. I will drop the medical complaint against Reid. I still don't really trust the guy, but I trust you Luke."

"Thanks, Noah and thanks for meeting with me today. I'm glad that we managed to clear the air." Luke smiled at Noah. "Well I have to get going." Luke said as he stood up.

Noah stood as well, "Me too" he said.

The two men looked at each other and hugged good-bye.


	7. Chapter 7

As soon as Luke left the Lakeview he sent a text to Reid. "R U done yet?" he hoped that Reid would get back to him right away. He was missing Reid and just wanted to be with him. He was still a little scared that Reid would realize that this mess was all Luke's fault and then reject Luke and send him away.

Almost immediately Luke's phone buzzed. It was Reid calling him back. "Hi Reid, are you finished with Bob."

"Yes," said Reid, sounding worn out and deeply unhappy.

"Are you okay? Do you still want me to pick up dinner or do you just want to be alone right now?" Luke asked nervously.

"I don't want to be alone. How soon can you meet me at Katie's with food?' Reid asked.

"I'm on my way to Al's right now; I will be at Katie's as soon as possible." Luke answered relieved that Reid still wanted to see him.

"See you soon." Reid said and hung up.

Reid quickly drove home from the hospital. He desperately wanted to see Luke, but he felt drained from the meeting with Bob. He knew that he had to tell Luke about all of the personal information that he had had to give Bob. God that was embarrassing and truly intrusive. He hoped that he never had to speak about his relationship with Luke to anyone else ever again.

If Reid were honest with himself he also had to acknowledge that he was worried about how Luke's talk went with Noah. He knew that Luke had chosen Reid but it still worried him whenever Luke saw Noah. He tried to hide his jealousy, but let's face it, although Reid was a master of hiding his emotions from many people, Luke had managed to see through all of Reid's crap and read him like a bloody book. It was both endearing and annoying that he was so transparent to Luke.

Just as Reid was unlocking the front door, Luke drove into the driveway. Reid waited while Luke parked his car and then went to help Luke with the food. Reid felt better just looking at Luke. He had to restrain himself from attacking Luke on the spot. Instead he settled for a quick hug and a kiss.

Luke was thrilled to receive such a warm welcome from Reid, but he could see the unhappiness etched onto Reid's face. As soon as the boys walked into the house, Luke went to the kitchen to get plates and glasses to set the table. He then started serving out the food. He noticed that Reid seemed pleased that Luke had thought to get him three huge sandwiches. "How did you know that I was craving sandwiches?" Reid asked playfully.

"Just dumb luck, I suppose." Luke replied serving himself some chilli and corn bread.

The two men ate in companionable silence and Luke could see some of the tension leave Reid's face has he ate his third sandwich.

Once the food was gone, Luke busied himself tidying up the dishes and throwing away the trash.

Reid sat nervously on the couch and prepared himself for the conversation that they needed to have.

Once Luke was finished in the kitchen he went and sat on the couch with Reid. He was careful not to sit too close to Reid as he didn't want to invade the other man's space. Reid was sad that Luke was sitting so far away from him. Reid wondered if Luke was sorry that he had ever gotten involved with Reid.

Both men sighed simultaneously. This seemed to break the tension that had quickly built up between them.

"How did your conversation go with Bob?" Luke asked cautiously.

"It was a complete nightmare. I'm really sorry Luke but I had to reveal a lot of personal details about our time together." Reid said sheepishly.

"Why are you sorry Reid? All of this is my fault. I don't really care what you told Bob, I am proud to be with you. I'm only sorry that you had to go through all of that. I know how private you are and to have to answer questions about us must have been hell for you." Luke said and moved a little closer to Reid and cautiously grabbed his hand.

Reid was so relieved by Luke's reaction that he moved closer to Luke as well. Luke never failed to surprise him.

"Are you sure you don't need me to tell you what I told Bob just incase the details get spread around the hospital? I asked Bob to keep the information confidential, but this is Oakdale so I am sure that all the details will end up on WOAK as breaking news or something. I just want you to be preapred so that you won't feel awkward about us." Reid really did not want to rehash the whole thing with Luke but he would if Luke wanted him to.

"Reid, I really don't care what people know about us, or think that they know about us. I trust you Reid. I know that you would never try to hurt or humilliate me. I meant what I said. I am proud to be with you. If other people have a problem with that then it is their problem not mine. If you want to tell me what you told Bob I am happy to listen, but I'm also happy to drop it."

'Thanks Luke. I really don't want to relive that horrifying conversation. Suffice it to say it was a lot of personal questions about feelings. Yuck! Bob is the last person that I wanted to talk about my feelings with. I was completely mortified the entire time."

"Poor you." Luke said, but he couldn't help smiling a little at the thought of Reid discussing his feelings about Luke with Bob. He wanted to laugh out loud at the image but one look from Reid cautioned Luke to reign his laughter in.

"How was your talk with Noah" Reid asked changing the subject and trying to wipe that silly grin off of Luke's face.

"It went really well." Luke said smiling enthusiastically. Reid dropped Luke's hand and felt his insides clench. Why is Luke smiling like that he wondered to himself.

Luke realized that he had said the wrong thing and tried to rectify the situation. "Noah says that he will drop the medical complaint against you. We had a really good talk, he wanted to get back together with me and I made sure that he understood that that will never happen. When I said that our talk went really well, I meant that I felt like I finally got through to him. I told him that I was with you and that I'm very happy with you because that is the truth. I also told him to call Richard and ask him out. I hope that he does. I know that a part of me will be jealous if I see them together but I also know that I will feel better that Noah is moving on and letting me go. I told him that he is an important part of my past but that you are my present and hopefully my future."

Reid looked at Luke and said "Thank God, Luke. I'm sure you telling him to call Richard probably crushed the poor bastard. No one wants to get dating advice from someone they are trying to date. Nothing says you're in the friend's column more clearly than that." Reid smiled at Luke and then took him in his arms and started kissing him. He felt lighter than he had in weeks.

Luke was in heaven now that he had managed to get Reid to believe that he was finished with Noah. Luke was only sorry that he had worried the other man. He would need to find a way to make it up to Reid.

"What are you thinking about Luke?" Reid asked sensing that Luke's mind had wandered while he was kissing him.

Luke just smiled dreamily and whispered naughty thoughts into Reid's ear.

Reid couldn't help smiling like a lunatic back at Luke.

"Bob has suspended me with pay for the next five days while they get Noah's complaint straightened out. Even if Noah rescinds it, the board will still have to investigate. I am confident that it will all blow over, what with Bob's support and Noah's change of heart. Anyway I was thinking about going away, maybe to Chicago. I've never been there before. What do you think?" Reid asked hopefully.

"That sounds great Reid. I'm sure that you will like Chicago." Luke answered slightly crestfallen that Reid wanted to go away on his own.

Realizing Luke's misconception he laughed and said, "I want to go away with you to Chicago, do you want to come with me?"

"Yes, of course I want to come with you." Luke beamed at Reid. "Can we leave tomorrow afternoon so that I have a chance to sort things out at work?"

"Yes" said Reid echoing Luke's sentiment.


	8. Chapter 8

Once Luke had gotten his work obligations sorted out he started to make some plans for the trip with Reid. He had offered to organize the hotel, but Reid had insisted on doing that himself and Luke didn't want to interfere. Secretly he thought it was very sweet that Reid was going to so much trouble for them, after all Reid hardly seemed the type to plan romantic getaways, Luke sighed contentedly.

Even though Luke was letting Reid organize the trip he wanted to surprise Reid so he decided to take Reid to a Cubs game at Wrigley field and he thought that Reid might also like to tour the ballpark. After arranging to pick up the tickets at the will call box office Luke quickly packed so that he was ready when Reid came to pick him up.

Promptly at 2:00 he heard a car pull into the driveway. Luke smiled and his heart skipped a beat. He was really excited about going away with Reid. Luke took his bags downstairs and went to greet Reid at the front door.

"Are you ready to go, Luke?" Reid inquired smiling lazily at the blonde beauty.

"Yeah, let's go!" replied Luke.

"Are you taking all of that luggage, Luke?" Reid asked with dismay. Luke had packed two huge suitcases and an overnight bag.

"Yes" Luke smiled beatifically at Reid who just shrugged and muttered something about Luke being such a girl.

Luke and Reid put Luke's bags in the trunk along with Reid's small suitcase. The two got into Reid's car and were blissfully on their way. The two men drove in companionable silence. Both of them were happy to be driving away from the stress of the last few days.

When they finally got to Chicago, Reid pulled up to this dreadful motel. "Well here we are, Luke. I know it's not as fancy as you're used to but at least it was cheap." Reid said casually.

Luke was horrified but he didn't want to hurt Reid's feelings so he put on a brave face. "I'm sure it will be fine Reid." Luke managed to choke out. He was afraid to look at Reid's face because he knew that his disappointment would show. Luke sighed and was about to open the car door when he heard Reid laughing. He looked over at Reid who had tears literally streaming down his face. "You believed I would stay here? "Are you crazy? I hope we didn't catch anything just sitting in the parking lot." Reid managed to spit out in between bouts of laughter. "Oh Luke your face was priceless, you looked so disappointed and yet so earnest in your attempt not to hurt my feelings. You are too perfect for your own good." He leaned over and gave Luke a heartfelt kiss.

Luke was struggling being angry with Reid for tricking him and relief that he wasn't going to have stay at this filthy motel. He kissed Reid back deciding to let Reid have his fun.

Reid turned the car back on and programmed the correct coordinates into his gps. Ten minutes later the Reid was pulling the car into the parking area of a beautiful hotel. Luke had stayed here before with his grandmother Lucinda when they had been to Chicago on foundation business.

"I love this hotel Reid, I have stayed here with my grandmother." Luke smiled at Reid.

Reid was relieved that he had picked a decent hotel. Reid popped the trunk so that the bellman could get their bags and then gave his keys to the valet so that he could park Reid's car.

The two men then went to check in. Reid had decided to splurge and gotten a huge suite for the two of them He was not a huge fan of hotels but he really wanted to do something special for Luke. As soon as Luke entered the suite he was shocked that Reid had gotten them a suite. He had expected just a small hotel room, which would have been fine with him. He was really touched by Reid's generosity.

"This is beautiful Reid, thank-you for bringing me here." Luke said simply.

"I'm sure that you've stayed in nicer places Luke, but I'm glad that you like it." Reid responded feeling a little insecure.

"This is the nicest place that I can think of because you're here with me." Luke said and kissed Reid tenderly.

Just then the bellman arrived with their bags. Reid could still not believe that Luke had brought two big suitcases. Luke practically ran to the bellman and grabbed his biggest suitcase. What can he possibly have in there that he needs so badly? Reid wondered to himself. Just then Luke looked up at Reid and smiled mischievously at him. What is that boy up to now? Reid's curiosity was really piqued now. Suddenly Luke opened the suitcase to reveal beautiful clean bedding. Reid was so touched by this gesture he went over and held Luke as tightly as he could while they were both still fully dressed.

"I remembered that you don't like hotel linens so I thought you might be more comfortable if I brought some from home." Luke explained.

"Luke Snyder you are the most thoughtful person ever." Reid beamed at him.

The boys quickly got rid of the hotel linens and put Luke's on the bed. "Hey, these smell like my sheets Luke." Reid commented.

"Yeah," Luke smiled sheepishly. "I changed laundry detergents so that I have your smell with me when I'm alone in my bed. It helps me sleep better when I'm not with you." Luke admitted shyly.

"You really are a girl, Luke" Reid said, but he was smiling and Luke was relieved that he hadn't freaked Reid out with his admission.

Luke and Reid stared at each other for several moments, just happy to be together without any distractions or annoying interruptions. Then they both felt the mood change as they could no longer keep their hands off each other. They made love slowly and tenderly just enjoying each other and taking their time. It was amazing to just be able to be together. As they lay together in the lazy afterglow of great sex Luke felt like his heart might burst. He had never felt like this before. What he had had with Noah was amazing but it didn't come close to how he felt with Reid.

He turned on his side and just stared at Reid with a stupid grin on his face. Reid started to feel a little bit nervous, "what's up Luke?" he had never seen Luke stare at him in quite that way and he didn't know what to make of it.

Luke sighed contentedly. "I love you, Reid." Reid started to panic now. Oh my god, I think that I love you too Luke, he said silently, but he just couldn't say it out loud yet. He had never said that to any man before and he wanted to be sure before he said it to Luke. It was too soon, he hadn't fully admitted the depth of his feelings to himself yet, but he desperately didn't want to hurt Luke. Wait Luke. Luke loves me he said he loves me! Reid's brain started screaming at him, and he looks so happy about it. I don't deserve him. Oh god what do I do now. He wondered to himself. Katie would know what to do, but I don't think that I can call her now for advice. OH MY God!

Luke watched as the many expressions flitted across Reid's face. He could tell that Reid was panicking and Luke wanted to soothe him. He quickly grabbed Reid's face in his hands and kissed him passionately, until he heard Reid moan and felt him start to relax.

"I love you, Reid" Luke said again. "I am not trying to freak you out I just couldn't hold this incredible feeling in anymore. I don't need you to tell me that you love me. I just wanted to tell you. Now you must be starving where do you want to eat?"

That statement was Reid's undoing. Luke offering his love and asking Reid for nothing in return made Reid's heart swell in a way he had never even dreamed about. He knew with a certainty that he loved Luke. "I love you too, Luke." Reid whispered quietly and then he kissed Luke like there was no tomorrow.

"Do you mind if we just get room service tonight Luke? I don't want to go out." Reid said with a devilish smile.

"Room service sounds great to me." Luke smiled and passed the menu to Reid.

AN Thanks to everybody who has commented on my writing. I hope that you enjoy this chapter. I just wanted the boys to have some light hearted fun in Chicago. They will be in Chicago for at least one more chapter.


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning the boys woke up happy and relaxed. "I have a surprise for you, Reid." Luke said, grinning like an idiot.

"You organized another surprise for me Luke? What is it?" Reid wanted to know.

"I got tickets for us to see a Cubs game at Wrigley field tonight." Luke said smiling nervously. He hoped that he hadn't over stepped.

"You got us tickets for a game?" Reid questioned sounding shocked. "You don't even really like baseball. You didn't need to do that for me." Reid said, once again humbled by Luke's generosity. "Thank-you Luke" he whispered gratefully.

"You're welcome, Reid. I just wanted to do something nice for you. I think that it will be fun." Luke said. "Hey, I found out that they give tours of Wrigley Field when I bought the tickets, do you want to take one?"

"Not even a little bit. I'll go if it's important to you, but I hate doing touristy stuff. I'll be happy if we just go to the game."

"That's fine with me. Do you want to go out for dinner before the game? I know a really nice restaurant that I would like to take you to." Luke asked.

"Sure Luke I would love to go to dinner with you. What time does the game start?" Reid wanted to know.

"The game starts at 7:00 so we will have to have an early dinner." Luke replied.

"That sounds great to me! Speaking of food I'm starving let's shower and then go for breakfast." Reid said with a leer.

"If we shower together we will never make it to breakfast. You shower I have an errand to run and then I'll shower and then we'll go for breakfast. How does that sound?" Luke asked.

"It doesn't sound as fun as my plan, but we will at least get fed if we do things your way." Reid replied.

Reid went to the bathroom and as soon as he closed the door Luke stripped the bed and got out clean sheets to replace them with. Once the bed was made Luke changed into sweats and a t-shirt and took the soiled sheets to the hotel laundry.

When Reid came out of the bathroom he was surprised to see that Luke had made the bed. He would have liked to have clean sheets, but beggars can't be choosers. He called out to Luke but got no answer. He must be running that mysterious errand, Reid thought to himself. I wonder what else the blonde was has in store. I can't believe how thoughtful he is, Reid smiled to himself.

Just then he heard Luke's phone ring. Reid quickly located the phone and answered it. "Luke Snyder's phone" Reid said trying to sound professional.

"Dr. Oliver is that you?" Noah asked apprehensively.

Reid rolled his eyes, what do I have to do to get away from this guy? "Yes Noah, it's me Dr. Oliver." Reid answered coldly.

"Where is Luke? Why are you answering his phone? His mom said that he's in Chicago are you there with him?" Noah peppered Reid with questions.

"I don't know, Luke's not here and yes we are here in Chicago…Together." Reid added pointedly.

"What do you mean you don't know where Luke is. Did he leave you?" Noah asked sounding more hopeful than he ought to.

"Luke said that he had to run an errand, I expect him back soon. Shall I have him…" Reid starts to ask but just then he hears a key in the lock. "I think that's him now, hold on."

"Luke, Noah is on the phone for you." Reid said holding the phone out to Luke.

Reid is happy to see that Luke does not look all that thrilled at the prospect of talking to Noah.

"Hi Noah, what's up?" Luke asked

"Are you okay? Do you need me to come and get you?" Noah asked in a rush.

"No, I'm fine. We're having a great time, why did you call?" Luke says feeling uncomfortable. He knows that Reid is listening to his half of the conversation and he just wants to get rid of Noah.

Sensing Luke's discomfort Reid turns away to give Luke some privacy, but Luke grabs Reid's hand and that is all the encouragement that Reid needs to come and nibble at Luke's free ear.

"I just wanted to tell you that I have dropped my medical complaint against Dr. Oliver, Unfortunately they are still going to have to investigate. When they asked me why I had changed my mind I told them that I had talked to you. I hope this doesn't cause you any more trouble Luke. I really am sorry that I started this." Noah said earnestly.

Luke could barely pay attention to what Noah was saying because Reid was now using his hands and his mouth on Luke. It felt amazing, but it was pretty distracting.

"Luke, Luke are you still there? Are you okay?" Noah inquired.

"Yeah, fine Noah thanks for calling but I've got to go. Bye" Luke said and hung up. He somehow managed to turn off his phone as well, so that there would be no more interruptions.

"You are way too distracting Reid." Luke said, but he was smiling so Reid knew that he was enjoying the attention.

"Come on Reid, I need a shower and I think that you had better show me how it works." Luke said mischievously and Reid nodded happily and led them to the shower.

A while later the boys were clean and dressed and ready to go for an early lunch. They had missed breakfast entirely.

"I need to stop by the laundry before we eat." Luke said. "It will only take a minute."

"Laundry?" Reid asked feeling perplexed.

"I had to wash the sheets that we used last night. I washed them after I put clean sheets on the bed this morning. That's where I was when Noah called." Luke explained.

Reid grabbed Luke and kissed him, hard. "You packed clean sheets for us and you washed the soiled sheets from last night. You are a god Luke Snyder, no wonder I love you so much. No one has ever taken such good care of me. I don't think that I can match it but I will try." Reid said seriously.

Luke just smiled at Reid. "I like looking after you Reid. I love you. I am glad that you appreciate me, that's what I need from you.."

The boys had reached the laundry room and Luke went in to put the sheets in the dryer and then they went to eat.

After lunch the boys decided to walk around the city. They spent their time just enjoying being together. Before they knew it it was time to head back to the hotel to get ready for dinner and the game.

Luke took them to a restaurant that was close to Wrigley field. He had been to the restaurant before and thought that Reid would like it. It was a nice place without being pretentions and the serving portions were large. Always a must with Reid's appetite although he was pretty sure that Reid would eat again at the game.

Reid was happy with the restaurant and ordered a large steak, baked potato with everything on it and French fries. Luke ordered a steak with rice and a salad. Reid had a beer with dinner and Luke had a soda.

"Does it bother you when I drink?" Reid asked, suddenly feeling self-conscious. He never wanted Luke to feel uncomfortable.

"No Reid it doesn't bother me at all." Luke replied. I have made my piece with alcohol. I would tell you if it bothered me."

"So, what did Noah want this morning, you never did tell me." Reid said with a smile.

"Well I was a little busy when I got off the phone and I really haven't thought about Noah all day." Luke replied.

"Good answer, Luke, now come on and tell me what Mr. Mayer wanted." Reid said.

"Noah wanted to tell me that he dropped the complaint against you, but they are still going to investigate the validity of his claim. He also mentioned that my name came up while he was explaining why he had dropped the claim." Luke explained. "I'm sorry should I have told you sooner? Do you want to go back to Oakdale to clear this up now?" Luke asked nervously.

"No Luke, there is nothing that I can do in Oakdale and I am enjoying this trip far too much to want to cut it short." Reid answered Luke. "Do you want to go back early?"

"No way, I want to stay here with you for as long as possible." Luke smiled at Reid.

"Me too!" Reid stated.

After that there food came and the boys both enjoyed their meals.

Then it was off to the game.

A/N I hope you like this chapter. I have never been to Chicago, so I hope that it is realistic that Reid and Luke could walk around in the city. I will continue on with this soon. Thanks again for the feed back.


	10. Chapter 10

AN I have never been to Wrigley Field so I am basing this experience on other ball fields. Sorry for any inaccuracies. I hope that you like this chapter. Thanks for all of the feedback so far I really appreciate it.

The boys finally made it to the game. Reid felt like a little kid. Luke had managed to get great seats for the pair of them and Reid was just excited to see a live game and to be here with Luke. He was still surprised that Luke had arranged this outing for them. Luke didn't even seem very interested in baseball at all. Reid hoped that Luke wouldn't be completely bored during the game.

Luke was thrilled to see how excited Reid was at the ball park. Luke knew that Reid liked baseball but he didn't realize that he was obsessed with the game. Luke was really happy that he had organized this outing for the two of them.

As soon as the pair was settled in their seats Reid started bombarding Luke with stats. He discussed the line ups of both teams, RBI's, and pitching stats. Reid then started in on a dissertation about the pros and cons of the National league versus the American league rules. Luke's eyes were glazing over as Reid babbled on and on but Luke didn't want to stop him because it was so cute to see Reid get carried away like this. As soon as Reid paused for breath Luke reached over and kissed Reid on the lips. Luke just couldn't help himself.

"Sorry, you are just too cute when you babble Reid, I couldn't help myself." Luke smiled at Reid noting the shocked expression on Reid's face.

"I'm sorry that I babble, I know that it freaks you out." Reid said bashfully.

"I love it when you babble Reid; you have no idea the effect it has on me." Luke replied suggestively.

Reid just smiled back at Luke; he couldn't believe how happy he was just to sit with Luke at the game.

Just then it was time to stand for the National Anthem and then the first pitch was thrown out and the game began. Luke tried to pay attention throughout the first three innings, but really he found baseball totally boring. He was happy to be there because Reid clearly loved the game and followed each and every pitch. Reid kept explaining in minute detail what was going on in the game After the end of the fourth inning Luke gave up on the game.

"Do you mind if I just listen to my IPod Reid?" Luke asked apologetically.

"Do you just want to go back to the hotel?" Reid asked worried that Luke was miserable.

"No" Luke stated emphatically "I'm happy to be here with you I just want to relax and listen to my music while you enjoy the game. I just don't want to be rude."

"Are you sure?" asked Reid feeling guilty, but also wanting to see the whole game.

"I'm sure." Luke said and smiled reassuringly at Reid. Luke then reached over and grabbed Reid's hand.

Reid looked lovingly at Luke and continued to hold his hand. Reid was happy when Luke put in his head phones because he no longer worried about keeping Luke informed about the game. It was exhausting to keep up a running commentary.

After the seventh inning stretch which Reid dragged Luke out of his seat for, Reid realized that he was starving. "Hey Luke, are you hungry or thirsty?" Reid asked.

"Are you kidding me? I'm still full from dinner" Luke answered incredulously.

"I'm starving" Reid smiled at Luke. "I'm going to go get something to eat. Are you sure that I can't get you anything?"

"No thanks I'm fine." Luke responded.

Reid got up and went in search of food. When he was at the end of the row he heard some men snickering and making rude comments. He didn't really pay too much attention to it, but when he got back he heard the same men calling out the words queer and fairy. He turned and glared at the area where the comments were coming from. He was now desperate to get back to Luke and make sure that he was okay.

"Are you okay?" Reid asked as he got back to his seat.

"Yeah, why?" "Luke asked.

"Some men were making homophobic comments and snickering at me when I was getting my food. I was worried that they had done the same to you." Reid explained.

"Well I had my ear buds in so I probably wouldn't have noticed." Luke said. "Are you worried about it Reid?

"Not too worried, let's just head out on your end when we leave the game." Reid suggested. Reid hated bigotry and he definitely did not want to get into a "situation" with some drunken homophobes. He also wanted to make sure that Luke didn't get hurt.

The top of the ninth inning came and the Cubs miraculously won the game. They didn't even have to bat. Luke was feeling quite tired and was happy that the gamehad ended uf bit early at least earlier than it could have been.

Reid grabbed Luke's hand and they left the staium together. Reid was a little nervous about holding Luke's hand but he was more worried about being separated from him in the crowd. He carefully navigated Luke through the crowd towards the parking lot where their car ws parked. Reid was careful to stay with a crowd of people while being conscious that there may be men in that same crowd who would want to hurt Luke and himself. Reid didn't feel truly safe until he and Luke were safely in their car and driving back to the hotel.

"Are you okay Reid? You seem really tense." Luke asked sympathetically.

"I'm just upset about what those bigots said to me while I was getting my food. I really don't understand prejudice and it really bothers me. When I am at work I operate on patients regardless of who they are. I don't judge anyone before I operate on them."

"Have you ever been attacked for being gay, Reid" Luke asked.

"I have never been physically beaten for being gay, but I have definately been discriminated against because of it." Reid replied. "My family was not very accepting of my being gay to the point that my father refused to acknowledge me as a gay person and my mom just kept trying to introduce my to nice young girls. You can imagine how thrilled they are that I am living with a woman. I have told them that Katie and I are just roomates but my mother refuses to accept that that statement is anything other than misplaced discretion. I find it utterly exhausting to have to keep coming out to them. I know that I always complain about Oakdale, but one thing I like about it is that nobody seems to even blink when they find out that I am gay. I told Katie before I moved in and she was great about it."

"Yeah, Oakdale maybe a small town with lots of drama but most people are pretty accepting. My Mom and Damian flipped out when I came out to them. Damian pretended that he was completely comfortable with my being gay, but secretly tried to send me to a camp that would "straighten"me out. My mom did not realize the lenghts that this camp would go to to deprogram me but she was plotting against me with Damian. It was pretty awful for me. Holden was great. He suspected I was gay when he noticed me looking at my best friend Kevin. He says that he was initially uncomfortable when he started to suspect, but when I came out to him he was nothing but supportive."

"I'm glad that Holden was supportive of you, and your mom seems on board with your sexuality now. Hence her inclusion of Noah in your family. Pehaps that's why she wants you and Noah to stay together so much, becuase she has managed to accept that relationship and if you move on to someone else , like say me, it might be hard for her to make that shift."

"You, Dr. Oliver, are pretty smart. I never realized that she may have bonded with Noah in an attempt to be more comfortable with me. Don't worry she'll accept you too once she realizes how happy you make me." Luke said with a smile.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N sorry it has taken me so long to get back to this story. Thanks for all of the great feedback. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

The next morning as the boys were laying in bed, Luke reached over and gently stroked Reid's cheek. "So Reid, what do you want to do today?"

"I don't know, is there anything special that you want to do Luke?" Reid replied.

"Well today is our last full day in Chicago and I would just like to kind of hang out with you. Uh if that's okay with you, I mean we can go sightseeing if you would rather, I just thought it would be nice to spend the day alone getting to know each other a bit better before we head back to the craziness of Oakdale tomorrow." Luke finally finished.

Reid just smiled tenderly at Luke and reached out to gently stroke Luke's hair. "There's nothing I would rather do than hang out with you Luke." Reid replied.

"Good" Luke replied, heaving a sigh of relief.

"Why don't we shower together and then get dressed and then go out for breakfast. I'm hungry now, and I 'm sure that I will be starving by the time we get downstairs." Reid said as he winked at Luke.

Luke smiled broadly at Reid and said "come on, I'll race you to the bathroom."

Reid laughed happily and scrambled out of bed to beat Luke to the shower.

After a long and very enjoyable shower the boys got dressed and went in search of food. They were both ravenous.

Luke asked the concierge for recommendations for breakfast. The boys were given directions to a quaint restaurant that was a short two block walk from their hotel. It was a glorious sunny day and the boys quickly found the restaurant. As they walked into the restaurant Reid was thrilled as he could smell delicious food. He barely noticed the ambience or the décor. He could only smell the food.

Luke did notice his surroundings and was pleased with the restaurant. He enjoyed the home blue checked tablecloths and the flowers set on each table. He was pleased when the hostess led the two men to a window table. Luke was also glad that the restaurant wasn't too full. He enjoyed having Reid all to himself.

The boys happily perused their menus. Luke opted for whole wheat toast, fresh berries and yoghurt as well as coffee and fresh squeezed orange juice. Reid, on the other hand ordered a stack of blueberry pancakes with butter and syrup, two eggs over easy, a side of bacon and a side of sausage, as well as coffee and fresh squeezed orange juice.

"Don't think that I'm going to share any of my food with you Luke" Reid warned the blond. "Why didn't you order a real breakfast?"

Luke just smiled. "I did order a real breakfast; I don't know how you manage to eat all of that food."

"Well don't complain to me when you are still hungry." Reid admonished Luke. "By the way I was blessed with a fast metabolism." I also run everyday and swim twice a week, he smirked to himself. No need to share all of my secrets, he thought to himself.

"Uh huh" Luke smiled at Reid.

Just then the food arrived for both men. As expected Reid had about three times the amount of food in front of him than Luke had. Truth be told Luke felt a bit sick as he watched Reid eat all of that food.

After breakfast the two walked leisurely back to the hotel. When they got back to their room Luke quickly changed the sheets on their bed. Reid had flipped on the TV and was catching up with the most recent sporting news.

When the bed was made Luke went over to sit with Reid on the couch. Luke was feeling a bit shy and gently reached out to hold Reid's hand. Reid was distracted and squeezed Luke's hand quickly and then dropped it and went back to watching the scores on the TV. Luke felt hurt and heaved a huge sigh and then went and got out his book. If Reid wanted to watch TV, Luke would find other ways of entertaining himself. Unfortunately, Reid was completely oblivious to Luke's hurt feelings and had no idea that Luke was feeling ignored.

When Reid was done with the TV he went over to check on Luke, who was now reading his book in bed.

"So Luke, what do you want to do now?" asked Luke hoping to get a friendly response.

"I'm happy just reading my book." Luke replied.

"Uh okay" Reid replied wondering what the hell he was supposed to do. Reid hadn't brought a book with him as mostly what he read were medical journals and he hadn't wanted to bring any of those with him.

Luke, of course didn't really want to read his book he was just punishing Reid for ignoring him earlier.

Reid tried to find something to occupy himself with as Luke read his book. He picked up an old magazine, looked at the hotel amenities, he flipped through the phone book, finally in desperation he picked up the bible. Really all he wanted to do was be with Luke, so he gave up on other distractions and undressed and got into bed beside Luke. Perhaps I can distract Luke from his book he smirked to himself.

Luke of course hadn't really been reading his book at all. He had watched as Reid had tried to find something to entertain himself with. He had been amused to see Reid actually flip through the phone book. Who, he wondered did Reid think he was going to call. Then Luke realized Reid was probably looking up possible restaurants for the boys to have dinner at.

What am I going to do now? Luke wondered to himself. I will never be able to concentrate on my book now with Reid lying naked beside me. I'm really not happy that he ignored me earlier. I am not going to have another relationship with someone who disregards my feelings: Luke fumed to himself. He can be as sexy as he wants I am just going to ignore him, Luke smirked to himself.

Reid was surreptitiously watching Luke and he could tell that the blond was upset about something but Reid had no idea about what. He replayed the morning's events and could not for the life of him figure out what he had done wrong. He wanted to talk to Luke but he didn't know where to begin. So Reid decided that he needed to get Luke's attention so that he could get the blond one to tell him what he had done wrong. So Reid moved closer to Luke, just a little bit and Luke didn't react so he moved a little closer to Luke and reached over and started to caress Luke's side. Luke gave Reid a dirty look but he didn't pull away so Reid just kept staring at Luke and touching him.

Oh my god, thought Luke, what am I going to do now? He's touching me and he's looking at me with those sad, questioning eyes. Oh no he's moving closer to me, and I don't want to pull away.

"What's wrong Luke?" Reid whispered in Luke's ear. "I know that you're mad at me, but I don't know why, please tell me."

"I don't like being ignored Reid" Luke replied coldly, but not as coldly as he would have liked. He was going to crack he already knew that.

Ignored? When had I ignored Luke, he wondered. He thought again about the morning's events and he realized that perhaps Luke had felt neglected when he was catching up on the sports scores.

"I'm sorry Luke," Reid began "Did you feel ignored when I was catching up on the sports scores?"

"Yes" Luke replied.

"I'm sorry Luke; I am a very focused person, that's what makes me such a good surgeon, unfortunately it often wreaks havoc with my personal life because I find it very difficult to focus on more than one thing at a time. I would never neglect you on purpose. Thanks for telling me." He said and lightly kissed Luke on his cheek.

Needless to say, Luke melted at Reid's apology. After that Luke put down his book and turned his full attention to Reid. Reid took his time with Luke showing the other man the full benefits of being with someone who was truly able to focus on Luke's needs and the two men had a blissful afternoon.


	12. Chapter 12

The next morning the boys woke up happy, if a little sore. They smiled at each other and Luke suggested that they have a shower before they went downstairs to breakfast. Reid was happy to comply, despite the fact that he was starving.

After their shower the boys got dressed and then headed downstairs for breakfast. They had decided to eat at the hotel restaurant mainly for convenience. The two men still needed to pack up their belongings and checkout before heading back to Oakdale.

When their breakfasts arrived, a huge amount of food for Reid and a reasonable amount of food for Luke, it suddenly hit Reid that they were heading home today. Reid began to worry. He had enjoyed his time away with Luke soooo much and he was unsure what was going to happen to them when they returned to Oakdale. He began to lose his appetite. He kept eating because he didn't really want Luke to start peppering him with questions that he wasn't sure he wanted to answer. So he ate most but not all of his breakfast.

Luke noticed that Reid was not eating with as much enthusiasm as he normally did. He was surprised when he realized that Reid left some of his food untouched.

"What's wrong Reid?" Luke asked as he always wanted to share his feelings.

"Nothing!" Reid snapped back. How the hell does he know that something is bothering me? Christ I ate way more food than he did. Reid sighed to himself, this is going to be a very long day. I hope I don't screw this thing, whatever it is, up.

Luke decided not to press Reid, he could tell that something was definitely up, but he left it alone hoping that Reid would snap out of his clearly foul mood.

After breakfast the two men went upstairs to pack. They didn't have that much stuff with them so the packing went fairly quickly. Luke stripped the bed and added the sheets to the other dirty sheets and packed them with the rest of his dirty clothes. Once they had all of their things packed, Reid double checked the suite for any forgotten items. Satisfied that they had packed everything, the boys left the room.

"I'm going to miss this suite." Luke said with a wistful smile on his face.

"You are such a sap, Luke!" Reid retorted, although secretly he was going to miss the suite as well.

"I've had a great time with you and I'm going to miss it. So sue me?" Luke replied somewhat defensively.

Reid just snorted.

Reid checked them out and had the valet bring his car arond to the front door. They filled the trunk with their luggage and headed back to Oakdale.

As Reid drove them back to Oakdale his worry increased. He desperately wanted Luke to talk to him and reassure him that their relationship would continue, but of course he didn't want to start the conversation. He kept hoping that Luke would magically figure out what was bothering Reid and manage to soothe his fears. Instead Luke just sat in the passenger side reading his bloody book as Reid became more and more stressed.

Luke could tell that Reid was in a very bad mood so he had planned ahead and brought a book with him so that he would be able to entertain himself without disturbing Reid. He was grateful that he was able to read in cars without getting sick.

After stewing for an hour while Luke calmly read his book, Reid couldn't take the heavy silence anymore.

"So how is your book, Luke?" Reid questioned.

"It's good" Luke replied.

"So, what's it about?" Reid asked inanely, really he could care less about what Luke was reading he just wanted to hear the blonde's voice.

"It's a thriller with a serial killer on the loose and the FBI trying to catch him before he kills again." Luke replied patiently. Why was Reid asking about his book, he wondered.

"Are you enjoying it?" Reid continued hoping that Luke would take the hint and put his book away and just talk to him.

"Yeah, I mean it's not exactly challenging, but it is a good read." Luke replied getting exasperated with all of the questions.

"So, have you read any other books by that author?" Reid continued. God Luke get a clue he silently pleaded.

"No, this is the first one, but I might try some of his other books if I am happy with the whole book. Why are you asking me all of these questions? Are you looking for a book recommendation? I've never seen you read anything that wasn't a related to medicine." Luke responded.

Reid sighed, god Luke was dense. "No, I just wanted to talk to you." Reid replied quietly, feeling like an idiot.

"Oh, okay well is there anything you want to talk about in particular?" Luke asked gently knowing how hard it was for Reid to admit that.

"Yeah, tell me what you like best about running the foundation." Reid replied, happy now that Luke was talking to him.

So Luke talked about the foundation. He talked about how much he liked being able to help people. How having his position allowed him to really make a difference in people's lives. He went on for quite awhile and then asked if he was boring Reid.

"You're not boring me at all, Luke. I love hearing the passion in your voice when you talk about your work. You have such a big heart, it always surprises me how truly generous you are, not just with your money but also with your time." Reid replied. "Is there anything else that you would like to do with your life?"

"Well, I wanted to be a writer for a long time, but I really haven't had much time for that lately. If I had the time I think that I would really like to get back to writing." Luke replied.

"You should make the time, Luke if it's something that you are really interested in. I am sure that you are an excellent writer." Reid encouraged Luke.

"What makes you say that, you've never read anything that I've written?" Luke questioned.

"It's just who you are Luke. If you weren't good at it you wouldn't waste your time writing. The fact that you want to devote time to it tells me that you are good at it. I would love to read something that you have written if you are comfortable with that. Then I can have solid proof that I am correct in my assessment." Reid smiled.

"If I start writing again I will think about you seeing it, but not my old stuff." Luke replied firmly.

"So tell me about running Grimaldi shipping Luke. Does running the company stimulate you or do you find it a burden?" Reid asked.

"To be honest with you, I hate it Reid. I feel woefully under qualified for my position and I am not really interested in improving my skill set for it. I'm sure that sounds terrible, but really I don't think that I am cut out to be a business man." Luke replied.

"How are you going to fix this situation, Luke?" Reid asked. "Life is too short to be stuck in a job that makes you miserable, especially when you are so passionate about other things."

"I think that you are right Reid. I will talk to my grandmother Lucinda when I get home and see what suggestions she has. She is an amazing business woman and I am sure that she can help me extricate myself from Grimaldi." Luke smiled at Reid. "Thanks Reid."

"For what?" Reid asked puzzled.

"Thanks for pointing out that I had a problem and helping me figure out how to fix it. You are pretty perceptive, you know." Luke answered.

"Well, I am a genius, you know." Reid smirked. "I'm glad that I was able to help you, Luke."

Just then Reid's GPS announced that he needed to take the next exit to get to Oakdale. As soon as he heard this his insides started to get tied up in knots.

"Well it sounds like we're almost home" Luke said with a sigh. "I'm going to miss waking up with you in the mornings."

"Me too" Reid barely whispered.

The two men contemplated the state of their relationship. They were both a little uneasy about their future. Things had been so easy in Chicago, but real life was abut to intrude on their bliss.

Luke finally broke the silence by saying, "well I guess we will have to be more creative in finding our alone time, now that we no longer have the suite to go to."

"I'm sure that we will be able to figure something out!" Although he wasn't entirely sure what that something would be.

"When will you find out about the medical review board?" Luke asked not wanting to let real life intrude but trying to support Reid.

"I will go to the hospital and see Bob after I drop you off." Reid replied with a sigh. "I'm not looking forward to it, but it has to be done."

"I'm really sorry about all this Reid. I feel responsible because of Noah." Luke stated

"Don't feel guilty, Luke. You are not responsible for Noah's actions. This is not your fault Luke." Reid stated emphatically.

"Thanks Reid. It means a lot to me that you don't blame me for Noah's actions. I won't really feel better until everything is resolved in your favour though." Luke admitted.

"I'm sure that it will all work out. I will let you know what Bob says after I talk to him, okay?" Reid asked.

"Great, hey do you want to have dinner with me tonight or are you sick of me yet?" Luke asked.

"I don't think that I'll ever be sick of you, Luke" Reid answered seriously, "and I'd love to have dinner with you."

Just then Reid pulled into Luke's driveway and parked his car. Both men got out of the car and Reid helped Luke bring his bags to the house.

"Thanks for taking me to Chicago, Reid! I had a great time." Luke said smiling broadly.

"The pleasure was all mine, Luke" Reid replied with a wink.

"Call me when you are done with Bob and we'll figure out where to go for dinner." Luke said and then leaned in to kiss Reid good bye.

"I will call you later." Reid replied with a smile and then they said good bye.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N This chapter resolves the medical review boards issues and also includes Mona Cross. I was inspired by "Caught in the Cross fire" by Lovelure. The notion that Mona Cross had a thing for Reid Oliver was just too tempting to pass up. I hope that you don't mind. I will re write this chapter if you or anyone objects. **

**Thanks to everyone for your reviews and support, it is greatly appreciated.**

After Reid dropped off Luke he went immediately to the hospital to speak to Bob. He was hoping that the medical review board had cleared his name so that he would be able to go back to work. As much as he had enjoyed his trip to Chicago with Luke, he really needed to work in order to feel whole.

Reid quickly parked his car and made sure to alarm it as his luggage was still in the trunk of his car. He strode purposefully into the hospital, and as luck would have it he immediately ran into Bob.

"Hi Bob, can I talk to you for a few minutes?" Reid inquired.

"Hi Reid, please come to my office I have some things that we need to discuss." Bob answered. 'I can see that Luke's manners haven't rubbed off on Reid yet' Bob sighed to himself.

Reid was worried at Bob's mention of the need for a discussion, he was hoping that Bob would just welcome him back and put him to work. 'No such luck' Reid thought to himself grimly.

When the two doctors arrived at Bob's office Bob politely ushered the younger man in.

Bob patiently offered Reid a chair and then waited for him to settle himself before Bob sat down.

"Would you like some coffee or a bottle of water?" Bob inquired he was hoping to lead by example. Reid shook his head no to Bob's offer of a beverage and fidgeted nervously as he waited for Bob to cut to the chase. Reid hated waiting, once Bob mentioned there were "things" to discuss Reid wanted to hear what they were immediately so that he could act accordingly. Bob could see that Reid was getting more and more impatient, but Bob just remained calm while he waited for Reid to explode.

Bob didn't have to wait long. "What's going on Bob? Did the medical review board revoke my license? I am no longer able to practice medicine? What does this mean for the new wing?" Reid asked getting somewhat more agitated with each question. 'Oh my god, Oh my god. Oh my god!' Reid chanted in his head.

"Well Reid," Bob began, "I have some good news and some potentially very bad news for you today." Bob stated somberly.

"Well what is it? " Reid demanded impatiently.

"Well the good news is that you have been cleared of any wrong doing by the medical review board and your license as been fully reinstated." Bob said with a slight smile on his face.

"Thank-God" Reid said and then he started to get up and leave when he remembered that Bob had said there was some potentially very bad news. How bad could the news be as long as he could still be a doctor? He wanted to phone Luke right away, but decided he needed to stay focused so that he could find out about this other news. Reid sat back down and turned his full attention to Bob, who was looking disconcertingly sober.

Bob watched the emotions travel over Reid's face and he was sorry that he was going to have to take away some of Reid's obvious relief.

"As you know, this hospital is in desperate need of a large infusion of cash. As a result I have been looking for a buyer who could provide such an investment and thereby secure the future of this hospital. The Invicta corporation has shown great interest in buying the hospital, but they have a strict non fraternization policy." Bob said pointedly.

"What the hell does this have to do with me?" Reid asked

"Well, you are the head of the new neurology wing and Luke is a major donor to that wing and the fact that you and Luke have a personal relationship violates Invicta's employee policy and creates a conflict of interest. As a result you may be forced to choose between Luke and your career." Bob said sadly. "I know from our previous discussion that you and Luke were not involved at the time that Luke donated his money and I am hoping that this will clear up any appearance of conflict. Mona Cross has been asking me to schedule a meeting with you as soon as you returned from your suspension. Due to the nature of the complaint against you by Noah indicates that it was a personal grudge rather than a valid professional issue and I am concerned that you are going to have to defend your personal life. I will back you up as much as I can, but I have to think of the needs of the whole hospital rather than just one doctor."

Reid was stunned. 'How could this be happening?" he wondered to himself. 'How can I possibly choose between Luke and my career? It figures, I finally find someone that I really care about and now he turns out to be the one person I can't have! The universe must really hate me!'

"What time is the meeting?" Reid asked Bob in what he hoped was a clam voice.

"I was hoping that both you and Luke could meet Mona and me at the Lakeview at 4:30 this afternoon. That will give you time to talk to Luke before you have to defend yourselves to Miss Cross"

"Does Luke really need to come to the meeting?" Reid asked. He wanted to keep this from Luke until he figured out how to get himself out of this mess.

"Yes, Luke needs to be there Reid, I have already spoken to him about the meeting but not about the possible ramifications about your relationship. I felt that you two should discuss that together." Bob said pointedly.

"All right, I'll talk to Luke, but I want to go on record to say that I will fight this decision with everything that I have. I do not want to give up Luke or my career." Reid stated emphatically.

Reid stood up then and stomped out of Bob's office.

Bob immediately picked up the phone and dialled Miss Cross's cell phone.

"Hello, Mona Cross speaking" came the perky reply to Bob's call.

"Hello, Miss Cross, this is Bob Hughes from Memorial" Bob replied

"Oh, Dr. Hughes, any word on when Dr. Oliver might be available for our meeting?" She inquired, trying to keep the excitement out of her voice.

"Yes, I just wanted to confirm that Dr. Oliver, Luke Snyder, and I are available to meet with you this afternoon at 4:30 at the Lakeview." Bob answered.

"Oh, really Dr. Hughes, I don't want to impose on you, or Luke Snyder, I am sure that Dr. Oliver will be able to answer all of my questions. I know how busy you are and I really feel that I have taken up enough of your time." Mona answered, trying to sound sincere. Did the old coot not understand that she wanted a 'private' meeting with dreamy Reid Oliver, she certainly didn't want Bob there and who the hell was Luke Snyder? Why had that interloper been invited. Oh God, Bob was droning on and she had missed what he said.

"I'm sorry Dr. Hughes, I missed that last part, My er phone must have cut out, you know how cell phones are." Mona laughed nervously.

"I just said that I am happy to give you as much time as you need. I have spoken with both Reid and Luke and we are all available. See you at 4:30" Bob said.

Mona quickly agreed, for what else could she do? Then the two of them said there goodbyes and Mona got off the phone in order to figure out a way to salvage the meeting with Reid Oliver and find some way to get him alone, preferably in her hotel room.

After Mona got off the phone, she wondered again why she had to deal with a dinosaur like Bob Hughes. Why couldn't Bob take a hint that she didn't want him at the meeting? Oh well, she thought to herself perhaps I can bundle this Luke Snyder person off with Bob and then have the gorgeous Reid to myself.

She wondered who this Luke Snyder could be so she googled him and much to her delight she found herself staring at a very handsome young man. Perhaps, she would only need to get rid of Bob, she chuckled to herself.

She read on about Luke and found that he was the head of the foundation that had donated so much money to the neurology wing. 'Oh,' she thought, 'that's why his name sounded familiar. Still, I wonder why he is coming to this meeting. Well he's easy to look at, perhaps a bit young for me, but who knows' she smiled to herself.

Meanwhile, Reid had managed to meet up with Luke.

"So what did Bob tell you about this meeting with Mona Luke?" Reid asked.

"Uh… not much, so tell me what you know about it." Luke insisted noting the frown on Reid's face.

"Who says that I know more than you, Luke?" Reid asked defensively.

"Are you kidding Reid? Your face and your body language tell me that you know exactly what this meeting is about and that you are very uncomfortable about it. So spill what you know so that I can help you through your latest trauma/drama." Luke smiled at Reid.

Reid could not resist a smiling Luke and so he gave in and told him about Bob's warning that Reid might have to choose between Luke and his job.

Luke was horrified that Bob had put them and particularly Reid in this position. "That's ridiculous Reid! You are not giving up your job and I'm not going anywhere, if one of us needs to step down it will be me. I will give up my seat on the board. That is clearly the easiest way to end the so called conflict of interest."

"Luke, you really don't need to give up your seat on the board for me. I know how hard you have worked to get your foundation to fund the neurology wing to my specifications. Hopefully this Mona person will see reason and we won't be faced with making a decision."

Luke just smiled, knowing that he would step down but feeling chuffed that Reid didn't just expect him to step aside. He was grateful that Reid not only appreciated his hard work but acknowledged it to Luke.

"Well let's see if we can't charm Mona into seeing things our way. From what you have said, Bob is willing to stand up for us so our only real obstacle is this Mona person. So Reid, uh… I want you to be as charming as you can possibly be. So when you meet her shake her hand and look her in the eye at the same time. Try to smile, as warmly as you can, tell her that you are thrilled to meet her and then sit down and shut up! I will carry the conversation from there. You just smile and look as interested as you can."

Reid glared at Luke for a moment, but then remembering what was at stake he silently nodded.

"What if she asks me a direct question? I don't want her to think that I'm an idiot." Reid said.

"You may answer a direct question, but try to be succinct and not snarky. I will be paying attention, so if I think that you are about to say something sarcastic I will talk over you. Please just let me help you with this. I love you, Reid, but honestly you are a bit of an acquired taste."

Reid was shocked. "Did you just tell me that you love me Luke?"

Luke blushed, he hadn't meant for that to slip out. "Uh… yeah I guess I did." He answered quietly.

"Did you mean it Luke?" Reid asked quietly

"Uh… yeah I did, I mean I do." Luke replied; barely above a whisper.

Reid grabbed Luke and kissed him hard. "I love you too, Luke and I am not letting you go no matter what!"

Luke smiled and kissed Reid back.

"Okay, let's go sort this stuff out with Mona and Bob so that we can go out tonight just the two of us. What do you say?" Luke asked grinning like an idiot at Reid.

"Sounds like a plan to me Luke" Reid replied with a matching grin on his face.

The two men walked over to the Lakeview together and they managed to pull themselves together before they faced the meeting with Bob and Mona. Luke was still reminding Reid of the strategy as the two found their way to the table where Mona and Bob were sitting.

Bob stood up to make the introductions when Reid and Luke reached their table. "Miss Cross this is Dr. Oliver and Mr. Snyder."

Reid shook her hand firmly. "I'm thrilled to meet you Miss Cross" he said while managing to smile at her and look into her eyes.

"Please call me Mona" she replied somewhat breathlessly. Good lord the man is even better looking in person and he's flirting with me.

"Please call me Reid" he wasn't sure whether or not he should have answered as it wasn't really a direct question but it seemed polite. However, he became even more unsure when Mona just kept staring at him. He quickly glanced at Luke for assistance.

Luke cleared his throat and put out his hand to shake Mona's.

Hearing someone, not Reid, clear his throat Mona managed to drag her gaze away from Reid and shake Luke's proffered hand.

"Please call me Luke" he said with a warm smile.

"Thank-you" Mona replied with a tight smile and then they all sat down.

Mona immediately turned her attention back to Reid peppering him with any question that popped into her head. She didn't even really care what his answers were she was just happy to look at him and watch his mouth move while he spoke. She was a little put out by the fact that he kept shooting furtive glances at Luke, but decided that he was probably trying to get Luke to leave and take Bob with him so that he could be alone with her.

Luke tried to rescue Reid from Mona by breaking into the conversation, but Mona steadfastly ignored him. 'This is very weird' thought Luke, 'it's almost like she wants to be alone with Reid. Oh my God, I think that's exactly what she wants! Well I can hardly blame her, he is pretty hot. I had better figure out a way to rescue him without insulting Mona.' Luke quickly looked at Bob for assistance. By the amused smile on Bob's face Luke could tell that Bob had figured out what Mona was up to.

Bob smiled to himself as he enjoyed watching Reid suffer, however he took pity on the other man when he interrupted Mona so that they could get the matter of whether there was a conflict of interest or not, by Invicta's standards.

"Now Mona," Bob began after clearing his throat rather loudly to get Mona's attention away from Reid. Bob could tell that Mona was annoyed with him, but pretended not to notice. "Reid, Luke and I wanted to discuss a possible conflict of interest with you before we continue with our plans regarding the sale of Memorial to Invicta."

"Alright" Mona replied wondering what on earth this was about. "What conflict of interest might there be?"

"Well as you may be aware, Reid and Luke have developed a personal relationship since Luke donated the money to the Neurology Wing and I was concerned that Invicta may not be comfortable with this development." Bob stated as diplomatically as he could.

Luke and Reid both held their breath until Mona answered.

"Why would Invicta care if they had a personal relationship? Isn't Luke on the board with Reid heading up the new wing?" Mona inquired. I just want to get back to concentrating on Reid, Mona thought to herself.

"Well that's why we thought that it might be a conflict." Bob continued patiently.

"I'm sure that they got closer through working together. Honestly, Invicta would only care if they were a romantic couple." Mona answered as patiently as she could. 'How dense could Bob be? Why would he think that Invicta would care about a friendship?'

"We are a couple!" Reid and Luke answered in unison. Reid even reached for Luke's hand to emphasize their statements.

Mona just stared with a look of horror on her face for a moment. Her gaze travelling from Luke's to Reid's face, finally falling on the two men's locked hands.

"You're gay" she spat out at Reid.

"Yes, I am." Reid stated.

"Why were you flirting with me earlier? Were you pretending to be straight? Mona inquired furiously.

"I have never pretended to be straight" Reid replied coldly, "and I was not flirting with you."

"Bob, you knew this? That he was…gay?" she said the word with undisguised disgust. "I am not sure that I feel comfortable dealing with this type of deception" she continued trying to put the three men in their places.

"First of all, Reid's sexual orientation has had no negative impact on his abilities as a neurosurgeon and played no part in my decision to hire him. His being gay is his business and not yours. I would never introduce any doctor by announcing their sexual orientation. As far as Invicta changing its mind about negotiating with Memorial, let me ease your mind and tell you that Memorial is not interested in being in business with a company with such an obvious bias. Memorial is no longer for sale." Bob finished firmly.

Mona was absolutely shocked. She stood up gave Reid and Luke each a withering look and then turned on her heel and stomped out of the Lakeview.

The three men watched her leave with a bemused expression on each of their faces.

Once Mona was gone, Reid turned to Bob "thank-you so much for defending me Bob. It means a lot to me." Reid said sincerely.

"You're welcome Reid, but I wasn't just defending you. I deplore hate in any form. I feel lucky that she revealed her prejudice now before the sale went through. There is no room for that kind of attitude in a hospital. I will be reporting it to her superiors as I am sure that they will not want their company associated with homophobia."

"Thanks again, Bob" Reid stood up and shook Bob's hand.

Luke hugged Bob quickly and smiled up at the kind man. "So I guess that Reid's job is safe and I can keep my seat on the board?" Luke smiled.

"Yes, your positions are safe!" Bob replied.

"Thanks Bob!" the boys said in unison and then the three men left the Lakeview.

**A/N Well that's it for now. Please let me know what you think. Finally thanks again to Lovelure and her/his inspiration.**


	14. Chapter 14

As Luke and Reid went to the parking lot at the Lakeview to pick up their cars the two men suddenly felt awkward with each other. It had been a very emotionally charged day and neither man knew quite how to diffuse the sudden tension that had built up between the two.

"So, uh… where are you parked Reid." Luke asked in a desperate try to break the tension.

"Over there" Reid pointed to the right side of the parking lot.

Luke inwardly rolled his eyes, frustrated by Reid's inability to hold up his end of the conversation.

"Do you still want to have dinner with me?" Reid asked completely surprising Luke.

"Yes!" Luke replied enthusiastically, suddenly grabbing Reid and kissing him.

Reid smiled happily at Luke, "so, where do you want to have dinner? Katie and Jacob are staying with Nancy Hughes tonight."

Luke smiled at the implied invitation. "How do you know that Katie is staying at Nancy's tonight? Have you even been home since you got back from Chicago?"

Reid rolled his eyes at Luke. "She texted me this afternoon, I guess she thought that I might be interested in her plans."

"Why don't we get take-out from Al's and head back to your place?" Luke suggested.

"Now, that's a great idea! Do you want to take two cars or do you want me to drive you back here tomorrow to pick up your car?" Reid asked.

"Let's take two cars. I will go to Al's and pick up dinner and then I will meet you back at Katie's, okay?"

"That sounds good to me! I'll see you there…soon!" Reid said and then leaned into Luke and kissed him to encourage him to be quick.

"Stop distracting me Reid, or I won't be able to get dinner, and I know how cranky you are when you don't get food!"

Reid looked horrified at the thought of not having dinner. He was starving, as usual! "I'll see you soon Luke, after you pick up the food! You know what I like right?"

"Yes Reid, I know what you like." Luke responded with a leer. "I'll see you soon."

Both men got into their cars and headed off to their destinations.

Reid hurried home in order to set the table for Luke. Reid knew that he wasn't the most romantic guy in the world but he was willing to make an effort for Luke. Plus he needed something to do while he waited for Luke.

Once he had gotten the plates, glasses, napkins and cutlery on the table, he thought about adding candles to the table, but decided that was too lesbianic for words. He rolled his eyes at himself for even thinking about candles and quickly decided that the table was ready, before he changed his mind and did something embarrassing.

Reid moved to his bedroom and quickly straightened it up. He changed the sheets on his bed and picked up all of his dirty laundry and put it purposely into the hamper. He straightened his night table, stacking some medical files that he had been reading before he left for Chicago. Finally, he checked the top drawer in his night table to make sure that he had lube and condoms at the ready.

When he had tidied up his room he went back to the living room to wait for Luke. Reid was not known for his patience at the best of times and waiting for Luke and food did nothing to help him with this. Reid quickly grabbed his phone and texted Luke

Where r u? R

Reid sent the text and then waited for Luke's reply. He turned on the TV in order to distract himself from the lack of Luke's response or return. Reid seriously thought about driving to Al's to see what the hold up was when his phone pinged indicating that he had a new text. Praying that it was Luke getting back to him Reid quickly picked up his phone.

Sorry, trapped by Noah, will be there soon! I hope! L

Reid just stared at the text feeling immobilized. 'What does that mean' he wondered to himself. 'How was he trapped by Noah? Why was it always Noah? Couldn't Noah move away from Luke and maybe just disappear from Oakdale and their lives altogether?' Reid knew that he was being slightly irrational, but Noah really rubbed him the wrong way. He was jealous of Noah because Luke had loved him, still did love him; he could admit that to himself, but more than that he was really disturbed by how Noah had treated Luke. Blaming Luke for his accident and pushing Luke away at every turn when Luke had just wanted to help Noah. Reid couldn't understand why Noah hadn't welcomed Luke's love and support.

Reid couldn't sit still a moment longer and got up and began to pace around the apartment. His brain was feverishly asking him questions 'what if Noah wants Luke back? Why wouldn't he? What if Luke takes him back? What am I going to do if Luke leaves me for Noah?' The agonizing questions went on and on raising Reid's fears and insecurities with each step he took. Finally he decided to get a beer out of the fridge in an attempt to quell the questions in his head in an alcoholic haze.

**A/N Well that is all for now. I will try to upload more tomorrow. This isn't exactly how I planned this chapter, but this is what came out. Please read and review. Thanks for all of the support.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N Warnings this chapter has some definite Noah hate. So if you love Noah read at your own risk.**

Luke was at Al's desperately trying to escape Noah. As soon as he had stepped into Al's Noah had accosted him. At first Luke was happy to see Noah because despite their breakup and the problems that Noah had caused for Reid, Luke really cared about Noah and wanted to remain close friends him.

Noah was delighted to see Luke, especially when he saw that the blonde was alone. 'Perhaps he is having trouble with Reid' Noah thought happily to himself. While he didn't want Luke to be hurt he had decided that he definitely wanted Luke back.

"Hey Luke," Noah had said smiling warmly and grabbing Luke and hugging him tightly.

"Uh… Hi Noah," Luke responded feeling somewhat dazed by the hug.

"Why don't you join me for dinner so that we can catch up? I want to know what you have been up to." Noah said warmly.

"Thanks for the invite, but I can't stay. I'm just here to pick up dinner for Reid and me and then I'm taking the food over to Katie's. I had better go and order it." Luke said standing up.

"Why don't you wait a minute Luke, I really do want to find out what you have been up to." Noah implored, desperately trying to keep Luke with him.

Luke sighed inwardly, torn between wanting to get back to Reid and not wanting to be rude to Noah. "I guess I can wait a few minutes before I put in the order." Luke replied.

Noah smiled warmly at Luke. 'He wants me back, I can tell. This is going to be easy.' Noah thought to himself.

"So what have you been up to, Luke?" Noah asked.

"Well, Reid and I just got back from Chicago. We had a great time in the city together." Luke replied smiling at the memories.

Noah, felt a twinge of discouragement but ploughed ahead. "What did you do while you were in Chicago? Did you go to any museums or art galleries?"

Luke blushed, much to the annoyance and discomfort of Noah. "No we didn't go to any museums or art galleries; I don't really think that Reid is very interested in those sorts of venues. We did go to a Cub's game though, and it was fun. Reid loves baseball." Luke responded.

"**You **went to a baseball game? You hate baseball Luke. That wasn't very considerate of Reid to drag you to a game. You must have been bored out of your mind." Noah said, happy to get a dig in at Reid and still be sympathetic to Luke.

Luke glared at Noah and sighed heavily. "Reid didn't drag me to the game. I bought the tickets in order to surprise him. Look Noah I'm going to go and order the food now" Luke said and walked away.

Noah followed Luke, desperate to repair the damage he had unwittingly done. "Look Luke, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to dump on Reid; I was just concerned about you. I still care about you and your happiness is important to me."

Just then Luke's phone pinged indicating that he had a new text message. It was from Reid. He was about to answer it when someone appeared to take his order. He quickly ordered chilli and cornbread for two as well as a huge sandwich for Reid. He also ordered salads for the two of them, although he was pretty sure that Reid wouldn't eat any salad.

As soon as he had ordered he hastily texted Reid back.

Al's was pretty busy, so Noah suggested that the two go back and sit down while Luke waited for his food.

"Okay, I guess," Luke replied just wanting to get his food and get back to Reid.

As the two men sat on a bench Noah began talking about his latest film project. Luke had always been very supportive of Noah's work and right now Noah desperately needed all of the encouragement that he could get. As Noah droned on about the story, locations that he planned to film at, casting developments and all of the million fascinating facts about his upcoming project, he noticed that Luke wasn't as interested as he normally was.

Noah frowned at Luke "am I boring you with my new film?" he asked feeling annoyed with Luke.

Luke blushed, he had been bored. "No of course not, it sounds like a wonderful project and I am sure that you will do a great job. You are very talented Noah and I am sure that you will become a huge success."

Noah smiled smugly. 'That was more like it' he thought 'I must have just imagined that Luke was bored'

Noah took a break from his monologue and looked out the window and to his surprise noticed Reid staring at Luke. Noah suddenly lunged forwrd and kissed Luke firmly on the lips. Luke was so surprised that he didn't pull away immediately. When Luke pulled away Noah looked out of the window to see that Reid Oliver was storming off away from Al's. Noah smiled smugly to himself, until he noticed that Luke was glaring at him.

"Don't ever kiss me like that again, Noah." Luke hissed. "I am with Reid now and I am happy with him. You need to move on." Luke continued and then turned to leave Noah staring after him.

Luke checked on his food and was relieved that it would be ready for him in about five minutes. Luke quickly texted Reid to tell him that Luke would be leaving shortly.

Luke was a little surprised that Reid didn't text him back, but he wasn't concerned about it.

Noah watched Luke and wondered if he should tell him that Reid had witnessed their kiss. He had wanted Reid to know how it felt to see someone else kiss Luke. Noah was all too familiar with that particular pain. The problem was he didn't really trust Reid and he didn't want to put Luke in danger.

Noah was also surprised by Luke's response to the kiss. While he didn't expect Luke to exactly welcome his affection, he didn't expect Luke to object so strongly to it. Noah hadn't really planned to kiss Luke, but when he noticed Reid staring at Luke, something inside of him snapped and he just had to kiss Luke.

Noah wanted Luke back and for the first time he was starting to think that Luke might really be done with him. 'How had this happened?' he wondered to himself. 'I need to come with a plan.' He noticed that Luke was picking up his order and Noah decided to follow Luke.

Luke was relieved to finally have the food in his hands. He couldn't wait to see Reid. He left Al's and headed to his car all of his thoughts securely focused on Reid.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N Sorry this has taken me so long to update. This summer has been crazy. Things should calm down for me in the fall. Thanks for being patient with me. I would just like to say that I don't personally hate the Noah character or the actor! I just hate Noah and Luke together romantically and I like to use him as a foil for Lure**. **Anyway I hope that you enjoy this chapter. Please review if you have the time. Finally I just reread the story so that I could continue and realized that I had had the boys say I love you for the first time twice. Sorry for the inconsistency, I totally forgot about the "I love you's" in chapter 9. I am going to pretend that they didn't happen so thanks for letting it go. Finally there is some strong language as Reid is really upset. **

Reid was in shock. He knew that Noah had been the one to initiate the kiss, but Luke didn't seem to be resisting the tall brunette. Reid had turned quickly and left Al's so that he could seek refuge back at Katie's. Reid was glad that he hadn't driven himself to Al's because he knew that he would not have been able to drive in his current condition. Luckily he had found a taxi to take him home almost as soon as he turned the corner, away from Al's.

Reid was so devastated by watching Luke and Noah kiss that he wasn't even hungry. As soon as he got into the apartment he immediately headed to the fridge to grab a beer. He quickly decided that one was not going to be enough and he ended up taking three with him over to the couch. Reid desperately wanted to get drunk in order to block out the horrifying image of Luke and Noah making out.

When Luke arrived at Katie's place he was surprised to see that the house was completely dark. He knocked on the door and called Reid's name but there was no answer. Finally he tried opening the door, but found that it was locked. Feeling beyond frustrated, he looked around for a hidden key. After about five minutes of searching he managed to find the elusive key. After letting himself in, Luke was planning to simply wait for Reid to come home. He decided that he would put the food into the fridge and then serve it when Reid returned. He hoped that nothing was wrong. Just as Luke turned on the kitchen light he realized that he wasn't alone.

"What the fuck are you doing here Luke?" Reid asked coldly.

Luke shivered at the cold tone in Reid's voice. Something was definitely wrong. "I brought the food from Al's. Do you want me to bring you a plate?" Luke asked deciding to focus on feeding Reid before trying to fix whatever was wrong.

"I'm not hungry; now get the fuck out of here Luke!" Reid yelled.

Luke was so shocked by Reid's claim that he wasn't hungry that the rest of the sentence barely registered. Luke quickly put the food away and hurried over to Reid to find out what on earth was wrong.

Luke left the light in the kitchen on so that they were no longer in total darkness. He noticed all of the empty beer bottles lined up on the coffee table. He had never seen Reid drink this much and wondered just how drunk the other man was. More disturbing that the alcohol was the fact that Reid didn't even look at Luke as he walked into the living room, it was as if Reid was willing Luke to disappear. Luke refused to give into Reid's wish. He had been pushed away by Noah plenty of times and he refused to follow that same pattern with Reid. Luke was determined to sort whatever was up with Reid out.

As Luke defiantly sat down at the other end of the couch, Reid finally looked at Luke. The look held such disdain that Luke visibly flinched when they made eye contact.

"Didn't you hear me? I told you to leave! Now go, just go Luke. I'm sure that Noah is waiting for you, so go." Reid spoke quietly, trying, but failing to hide all of the hurt that he was feeling.

"What are you talking about? What does this have to do with Noah?" Luke asked. He didn't bother to mention that he wasn't leaving. He had decided that it would be easier just to ignore Reid's request.

"I saw you." Reid said accusingly.

Luke waited for Reid to elaborate, wondering what on earth he had seen. Realizing that Reid wasn't going to say more, Luke pushed forward.

"What did you see, Reid? What are you so upset about?" Luke asked, trying to stay calm.

"I saw you kissing Noah at Al's. I saw him lean across the table and shove his tongue down your throat, and I didn't see you push him away. In fact, you two looked pretty cozy. Now can you PLEASE GET OUT NOW!" Reid finished loudly, all the pain that he was feeling clearly emanating from his whole being.

Luke was shocked by Reid's accusation and horrified that Reid had witnessed that kiss. Part of him felt that he should just leave Reid alone. He desperately wanted to take Reid's pain away but didn't really know how. Finally he decided the best course of action was to stay and fight for Reid.

"I'm not leaving until I explain what happened. I can't go until you hear my side. First of all, Noah kissed me, I did not kiss him and while I didn't immediately push him away I made it perfectly clear that I never ever want him to kiss me like that again. I was so shocked that he was kissing me that I couldn't react. Secondly, there was no tongue, I probably would have bitten him if there had been. Thirdly, I am never going back to Noah, whether or not we are together, I know now that I could never be with him again. I don't want to be with him again. Now that I have had some distance from that relationship I can see how truly dysfunctional it was. I loved him, I'm not going to deny that but what I felt for him was neither as deep nor as powerful as what I feel for you. Now, if you still want me to go I will, or I can get you some food." Luke added hoping that Reid would accept his explanation.

Reid mulled over what Luke had said. He was grateful that Luke just sat on the couch and waited for him to digest this explanation. Reid decided that he was hungry after all and asked Luke to fix him a plate of food. This gave Reid a chance to process the evenings events and have something to eat, without actually having to get up to get it. Reid was starting to feel the effects of all the beer that he had drunk and did not want to embarrass himself by falling over in front of Luke.

Reid desperately wanted to believe that Luke was telling him the truth, but he couldn't erase the image of Noah kissing Luke from his brain. The image was seared into his head and the alcohol had not managed to diminish the pain it caused him.

"Thanks, Luke" Reid said as Luke put a plate of food and a bottle of water in front of Reid.

The two men sat in silence as Reid ate his sandwich and drank his water. Luke couldn't eat as his stomach was in knots as he worried about whether Reid would believe his explanation. Luke had questions about why Reid had gone to Al's and why he hadn't come in to confront Luke and Noah, but he wisely decided that these questions could be broached at a later time.

"So, Noah kissed you huh? You were surprised by it?" Reid asked quietly.

"Yes to both questions. I was actually shocked that he kissed me at the time and I'm even more surprised now." Luke began. Reid eyed him quizzically and Luke continued. "Noah was never all that comfortable with his sexuality and never wanted to commit PDA. He would often complain if I tried to hold his hand in public. He always said that affection was a private matter. I have no idea why he kissed me tonight. He was boring me about his new film project and all of a sudden he just grabbed me and kissed me. If I had been expecting it I would have stopped him before it happened."

"Okay, Luke I think that you should go home now. I need to go to bed and I need to be alone to absorb this. I will talk to you tomorrow." Reid said.

"Okay Reid. I'll talk to you tomorrow. You should take some advil before you go to bed so that you don't wake up with a wicked hangover tomorrow." Luke advised with a small smile.

"Thanks Dr. Snyder, I will do that. Good night Luke. Drive safely." Reid replied with a small smile.

Luke leaned over and hugged Reid. "I will drive safely and you have a good sleep. I love you." Luke whispered and then he stood up and walked out the door, hoping that things between the two of them would be better the next day.

**A/N Sorry to leave them unhappy and alone at the end of this chapter. Please read and review and let me know what you think.**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N I am using Holden as a sounding board for Luke in this chapter and I hope that I am able to capture this relationship. I really enjoy the interaction between Luke and his dad.**

Luke did not sleep well after he returned from Reid's house. He worried that he should have apologized for the kiss, even though it wasn't really his fault, and begged Reid to forgive him. He worried that Reid would realize that Luke was just too much trouble and that Reid would be happier without Luke hanging around. All of these thoughts coupled with questions as to why Reid had gone to Al's? Why Noah had kissed him? Was the timing of the kiss a coincidence or had Noah spotted Reid and kissed Luke to get a reaction out of Reid? So many questions led to tossing and turning and very little sleep.

At 8:00 am Luke gave up on sleep and got up and showered and dressed. He felt awful and looked like worse. He desperately needed some coffee and some conversation. Luke did not want to have to deal with his mother that morning, so he quickly left the house. He wanted to confront Noah about the timing of the kiss and ask him whether or not he had seen Reid before he had kissed Luke, but he decided that with his luck Reid would enter Java at just the wrong time and the situation would blow up in Luke's face. Again! He quickly decided that the person he needed to talk to, other than Reid was Holden. Holden was the one person who would offer Luke food, coffee and advice without judgement or blame. Feeling better than he had since leaving Reid the night before Luke headed for the farm.

Luke arrived at the farm very quickly and immediately ran into Holden who was in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee.

"Hey Luke" Holden said as Luke entered the kitchen. He was happy to see his son whom he hadn't seen very much of lately. "You look awful! Do you want a cup of coffee? Emma's out of town with Meg but mercifully she left plenty of food for the likes of us. Would you like me to get you something to eat?"

"Thanks, Dad! Coffee sounds great and maybe a muffin to go with it. Do you think you can find me a banana chocolate chip one? Those are my favourite and I could really use some cheering up." Luke added candidly. "Do you have time to talk or are you on your way out?" Luke asked, fervently hoping that Holden would stay and talk to him, even if he was busy.

Holden smiled warmly at his son. "Of course I have time to talk to you Luke, I always have time for you. I hope that you know that. I also know where the banana chocolate chip muffins are. I will heat one up for you now, or did you want two?"

"I'll start with one with an option for a second one if I feel that I need it, okay?" Luke replied, feeling better already because of the easy banter with his dad.

Holden put Luke's coffee and muffin down at the table and gestured for Luke to sit down. He knew that this conversation was going to be emotional for Luke and he wanted his son to feel as comfortable as possible.

"So…. What's on your mind, Luke? Does this have anything to do with Reid?" Holden wondered aloud.

Luke sighed, dramatically and Holden knew that he had hit the nail on the head, so to speak.

Luke gathered his thoughts together so that he could explain the situation to Holden as clearly as possible. He was still a little uncomfortable talking about his love life with his dad and was relieved that Holden had brought up Reid first.

"Yes, this is about Reid" Luke began slowly. "Are you sure that you are okay with me talking about this stuff with you? If you're not okay with it please tell me now before I get you so wrapped up in this mess that neither of us will be able to extract you from it easily."

Holden smiled sadly at Luke. "I love you, Luke, all of you. I'll be honest with you, I don't want to hear any intimate details about your sex life, not because you are gay, but because you are my son and I am not up for the gory details, but I am happy to hear about your feelings, concerns and problems. I will give you as much advice and guidance as I can and then it is yours to use or discard as you see fit."

Luke smiled back at Holden. "Don't worry Dad, I don't want to hear about your sex life either. Ew!" Luke said with a shudder. Straight sex is too gross to ever think about too much, especially when it involves your parents. 'I will have to mention this to Reid' Luke thought to himself, smiling and then he remembered what had happened last night and the smile vanished from his face.

Holden noticed the change in Luke's mood and waited for his son to open up and tell him what was worrying the young man.

"Last night Noah kissed me and Reid witnessed it." Luke blurted out.

"Wow" was all Holden managed to respond to this outburst.

"Yeah, well that's not how Reid felt when he saw the kiss." Luke lamented.

"I guess not" Holden replied getting over the shock of Luke's statement. "Why did Noah kiss you?"

"I don't know" Luke sighed. "We, well he was talking to me about his new movie project and then out of the blue he leaned over and kissed me. It was actually kind of weird and very out of character for Noah. We were at Al's. I had stopped by to pick up food for Reid and me and Noah was there and he said he wanted to catch up with me. I hadn't seen him for awhile and I miss his friendship so I agreed to visit with him while I waited for my food."

"Was Reid with you two the whole time?" Holden asked confused as to how these events had taken place. "It seems awfully bold for Noah to kiss you right in front of Reid."

Luke shook his head, "Reid wasn't with us. I don't even know why he was there. I had offered to go to Al's to pick up food for the two of us, while Reid went home to Katie's. The plan was for me to meet him at Katie's with the food. This sort of happened, except that Reid had come to Al's and happened to see Noah kiss me through the window. I had no idea that he was there and had witnessed the kiss, until he told me after I got to Katie's."

"Okay, so what happened when Noah kissed you? Did you…uh… enjoy it? Do you still have uh romantic feelings for Noah? Are you conflicted about these two men and how they fit into your life?" Holden really understood romantic triangles and had a lot of experience with them. Although he didn't want to hear about the sexual component of Luke's relationship(s) he felt that he might be able to shed at least a little light on the trials and tribulations of a romantic triangle.

"Truthfully, I was shocked when Noah kissed me. I'm not really sure if I enjoyed it physically, or not. Emotionally, though, I was devastated by the kiss. I no longer have romantic feelings for Noah at all. Not just because I am in love with Reid now, but also because I have moved on from Noah. Noah is truly my past now. I would still like to be friends with him, because he was such an important part of my past. He helped to shape me as a gay man. If I hadn't had the experience of loving and being loved by Noah I am not sure that I would have been ready for Reid. I don't regret my relationship with Noah, but I don't want to revisit it either, other than as a fond memory. The kiss, did not make me want to get back together with Noah at all, if anything it took something away from the purity of my love for him. As soon as I pulled away from him, I made it clear that I **never **wanted him to kiss me like that again. I truly hope that he got the message, because if he tries it again I will be forced to sever all ties with him and that would definitely devastate a part of me."

"You really are over Noah aren't you?" Holden said, with new found respect for his son. Luke sounded so confident and clear in his decision to be apart from Noah and to be with Reid. He was impressed that Luke saw his break-up with Noah, not as a bi-product of his relationship with Reid, but as something separate from Reid altogether. He was glad that Luke was not waffling between the two men. Holden knew how painful it was to be in love with two people at the same time, and also to be one of the two people who was loved. Luke didn't really seem to be in a triangle at all. Then he remembered Reid.

"So, how did Reid react to the kiss, I'm guessing that he wasn't all that pleased. Dr. Oliver does not strike me as the type to share his toys. Not that you're a toy, Luke" Holden said quickly, "but you understand what I am saying, don't you?"

Luke sighed heavily, "I know exactly what you are saying, and, of course you are correct. Reid, apparently stormed off and went home and got drunk."

At the mention of alcohol, Holden tensed up. "Uh… you weren't drinking were you Luke?"

"No, of course not Dad, I'm not a complete idiot! I wanted a drink when I was with Reid, and I wanted one even more when I got home, but I resisted, because I know that alcohol won't help me and I need to keep a clear head in the hopes that I can convince Reid to give me another chance."

"Did he break up with you over this?" Holden asked, incredulously, he had seen the way that Reid looked at his son on the rare occasions that he had seen the two men together.

"Not exactly, he tried to throw me out a few times, but I refused to leave until he told me what was wrong and listened to my side of the story. He thought that I had changed my mind about us and was going to go back to Noah. He was hurt and drunk, but he did let me hug him before I left. I didn't want to leave, but I could tell that he needed to be alone. He promised to call me today, and I hope that he will. I will try not to panic and call him before he has a chance to call me." Luke said with a smile.

"You want to call him now, don't you?" Holden surmised.

"Yeah, I do" Luke said with a goofy smile on his face.

"I'm sure that he will call you Luke. Reid doesn't seem the kind of man to play games."

"You're right; he's not into mind games at all." Luke said.

Holden noticed that while Luke seemed happier than when he had first arrived, he still seemed pensive. "Is there something else that's bothering you, Luke?"

"I didn't apologize for the kiss. I'm not sure if I should have or not. I am sorry that it happened, but I don't feel like I did anything wrong. I feel that the kiss was done to me and if anyone should apologize for it, it's Noah. During my relationship with Noah, I always felt like I was in the wrong and as a result, I spent much of my time apologizing for things. Lot's of things. Reid never makes me feel wrong. He always makes me feel confident and strong, this is one of the things that I love most about him. He didn't ask for an apology and I didn't offer him one. I simply told him what had happened from my perspective, but now I am wondering if I should have apologized and I don't like feeling this way. I hate having to second guess myself."

"I don't think that you need to apologize to Reid. You didn't do anything wrong Luke. You might want to tell Reid that you are sorry about the situation and the impact that it had on him, because that is how you feel. I'm sure that Reid won't hold Noah's actions against you." Holden said. "I am glad that Reid makes you feel confident and strong, that's what a partner should do. You should be with someone who appreciates you and makes you feel good about yourself. Life is way too short to spend it with someone who makes you doubt yourself."

"Thanks, Dad" Luke said sincerely grateful that his dad was not only listening to him, but also supporting him in his choices.

"There's one more thing that is bothering me about this kiss." Luke said.

"What's that?" Holden asked, cautiously.

"I'm just wondering why it happened at all and if Noah was aware that Reid would be a witness to it." Luke said.

"What do you mean?" asked Holden.

"Well form what Reid told me, he was only at Al's for a very few minutes. He had just looked in the window and saw Noah lean across the booth and kiss me. I was completely shocked by the kiss as it happened in the middle of Noah talking about his latest film project. He has never, ever kissed me while talking about a film project before, he has even gotten mad at me for kissing him while he has been explaining a particular scene to me. Even when said scene involves kissing, in the past he has always given me a scolding if I dared to lean over for a quick kiss during any explanation dealing with movies. Secondly, he has never been very comfortable expressing his feelings in public. He always demanded privacy when were affectionate with each other. So I am left wondering if he spotted Reid and kissed me hoping that Reid would see us and thus cause problems for me and Reid. What do you think? Am I onto something, or am I simply paranoid?"

"Well, the timing is curious, but Noah never seemed that devious to me. I think that you need to ask him about it and see what he says." Holden replied.

"I would like to confront him, but I am not ready to see him yet. I want to talk it over with Reid and make sure that he is comfortable with me talking to Noah before I approach him. It's not that I need Reid's permission; I just don't want to go behind his back. Also, with my luck, Reid will walk in and see us at an inopportune moment and decide that I really am cheating on him."

"I think that that's a good idea Luke. Talk it over with Reid and see how he feels about the situation. I think that you are handling this whole mess with a great deal of maturity. I'm proud of you." Holden smiled at Luke. "Please let me know what happens with Reid next. I'm sure that everything will work out, but I would like confirmation from you, okay?"

"Sure thing, Dad and thanks for listening to me! I really appreciate it." Luke said with a smile.

Luke was really glad that he had come to talk to Holden. He was still worried about the whole situation with Reid, but talking to his dad made him feel more confident that he and Reid would get back on track. Luke stood up and hugged his dad and then said goodbye with a dreamy smile. Fortunately for Holden, he thought the smile just meant that Luke was feeling better, he didn't realize that Luke had started to think about how great make-up sex was going to be with Reid.

**A/N The next chapter will be Reid's feelings about the kiss between Noah and Luke. He's going to talk to Katie, of course! Please read and review. Thanks for hanging in there with me. For any of you who are reading Date Night I will update that one soon.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N Well here it is, the talk between Reid and Katie. Thanks to everyone for being so patient with me. Right now I am so frustrated with the show I hope that this doesn't detract from the story**.

**Warning: Hungover Reid has a tendency to swear!**

Reid woke up the next morning with a blinding headache and a churning stomach. He quickly, well as quickly as was humanly possible in his current condition, ran to the bathroom and threw up. 'Great, what a fantastic way to start the day!' he thought to himself sarcastically. Just then he heard a knock on the door, "are you okay in there Reid?" Katie asked. 'Fuck' Reid thought to himself, "yeah, I'm okay, thanks" Reid said aloud.

"There's coffee waiting for you in the kitchen." Katie responded cheerfully.

'Fuck!' Reid repeated to himself, he knew what was coming. He was going to have to talk to Katie. Relive the whole Luke nightmare, while at the same time nursing a hangover. This day was really going to suck.

Reid decided he might as well make the best of the situation. He washed his face with warm water in an attempt to feel a little more human. Then he brushed his teeth and then rinsed his mouth with mouthwash in an attempt to rid his mouth of the taste of bile. Finally he got into the shower. He turned up the water so that it nearly scalded his skin. He scrubbed his body clean and carefully shampooed his hair. Unfortunately, shampooing his hair made him think of Luke's hair which made him think about the blond. As he rinsed his hair roughly, he tried not to think about Luke, which in turn made him think about Luke more. He started remembering what it was like to shower with Luke, which led him to think about how great shower sex was with Luke. 'Fuck' he thought again, because now he was incredibly hard just thinking about Luke. "Fuck, Fuck, Fuck" he muttered to himself angrily as he turned the shower from hot to cold in an effort to soften his dick. 'How can I be so angry and hurt and still be so turned on just by the thought of bloody Luke Snyder' he fumed inwardly.

As soon as the cold water had worked its magic, such as it was, he got out of the shower and dried himself with a soft, fluffy towel. Then he dressed himself in scrubs and a t shirt and mentally prepared himself for the grilling he was about to get from Katie. 'This day really sucks!' he thought to himself. 'I really just want to curl up into a ball and hide in my bed. God, I'm pathetic.' Reid concluded inwardly, 'Is this why Luke let Noah kiss him? Oh my god! I am losing it. I had better go and listen to Katie; perhaps she can make me feel better.' He almost felt cheered by this thought. "Who the hell am I?" Reid wondered aloud.

"Pardon me?" questioned Katie.

'Christ, now I'm talking to myself' he thought angrily. "Nothing, I was just…" he finished hoping Katie would just drop it.

"Talking to yourself?" Katie finished for him, smiling broadly.

'Fuck, this day really SUCKS1' he thought to himself as he glared at Katie.

Katie just smiled back at Reid handing him a cup of coffee. "So…who was here for the party last night?"

"Huh?' Reid asked feeling perplexed.

"I found all of the empty beer bottles on the coffee table," she said pointedly.

"Oh, uh it wasn't a party, it was just Luke and me." Reid answered sadly.

"Luke was drinking? You let Luke drink?" Katie asked, looking stricken.

"No, I was the only one drinking. I would never let Luke drink! What kind of person do you think I am?" Reid said, feeling embarrassed, offended and hurt all at the same time.

"I'm sorry, Reid. I'm sure that you would never let Luke drink." Katie responded, feeling suitably chastised. "You drank all of those beers? By yourself?" Katie asked, not even trying to conceal the shock in her voice.

"Uh…yeah" Reid admitted, feeling very uncomfortable.

"Why? What happened? Where's Luke? Did you break up? WHAT IS GOING ON?" Katie demanded. "No wait, I can tell that this is going to be a loooong discussion and I want us to be comfortable. Pick up your coffee cup and let's move to the couch," she insisted.

Reid, already feeling somewhat defeated, just quietly did as he was told. As soon as the two were situated on the couch Katie silently handed Reid one of her throw pillows, which he took, equally silently and hugged it to his chest gratefully.

"Okay Reid, start talking" Katie demanded.

"Where should I start?" Reid asked in a bid to stall for time.

Katie wasn't going to let him get away with that nonsense for one minute. "Reid" she admonished pointedly.

"Okay" he conceded. "I'm not sure where Luke is. I sent him away last night, because I just couldn't handle being around him anymore. I don't think that we broke up." 'God I hope not,' he added silently.

"Back up Reid, why were you drinking?" Katie decided that she would have to ask simple questions in order to pry the whole story out of him. She hated to see Reid in so much pain and she was sure that he was going to need her help in order to feel better.

"I saw Noah kissing Luke at Al's last night" Reid responded sounding broken as the image replayed itself relentlessly in his brain making him want to have another beer just to help block out the awful vision.

Katie took a moment to digest this information. No wonder Reid was so upset. She needed more information, but she didn't want to hurt him unnecessarily.

"I take it the kiss was a real kiss, not just a friendly peck between two old friends," Katie asked, hoping that there was some room for interpretation.

"It was a real kiss. Luke said there was no tongue, but it looked pretty passionate from my vantage point." Reid responded.

"Why were you all at Al's together?"

"We weren't all together."

"I'm confused" Katie said, plainly implying that she needed more details.

"Me too" Reid smiled weakly. "Luke went to Al's to pick up dinner for the two of us and bumped into Noah who wanted to catch up. Luke, who is far too polite for his own good, agreed and the two sat down at a booth and began to talk. Luke texted me that Noah had trapped him, so I went to Al's in a misguided attempt to rescue Luke. When I got there I looked in the window, just in time to see Noah reach across the table and plant a big, juicy wet one on Luke. I quickly left and came home."

"You didn't go into the diner to ask Luke for an explanation?" Katie asked in shock.

"No! Why would I do that? I was already humiliated I did not feel the need for further, public, embarrassment." Reid answered reasonably.

"How did Luke respond to the kiss? Did you at least wait to see how he felt about it?" Katie inquired.

"No, I just got the hell out of there. Luke has told me a million times that Noah is the love of his life I just assumed that they had worked things out." Reid said miserably, still not wholly believing that this wasn't the truth.

"Never assume, Reid. I take it that Luke came over after this incident." Katie stated.

"Yes" Reid replied.

"He obviously didn't tell you that he and Noah are back together or you would know that the two of you had broken up. So what did Luke have to say for himself? I'm sure that you confronted him about the kiss, otherwise why would Luke have mentioned that there was no tongue."

"Luke had no idea that I had seen the kiss, until I told him that I had witnessed it. He told me that Noah had kissed him and that he had been too shocked to respond right away. He said that he told Noah never to kiss him like that again."

"Do you believe him?" Katie asked.

"I don't know, I want to, but it's difficult to know what to think."

"I understand that. I know that you are angry and hurt, just as anyone would be, but Luke is a pretty honest guy; I don't think that he would ever cheat on you. Did he blush or stammer when he told you what happened?"

"No, he just answered me flat out."

Katie nodded. "I think that you should trust Luke. I know that he cares about you, a lot. Anyone who has seen the two of you together can tell that he is crazy about you. The only thing that surprises me is that Noah kissed him at Al's. Wasn't it busy at Al's last night?"

"Yes, the place was packed when I looked in the window. Why do you ask?" Reid hoped that he knew where this was going, but he wanted Katie to confirm it with no extra prompting from him.

Katie frowned. "I have never seen Luke and Noah be physically expressive with each other in public. Luke is much more affectionate with you than he ever was with Noah. I don't think that I've ever seen them kiss." Katie added thoughtfully.

"Luke said much the same thing to me about Noah and pda; I wonder why he felt comfortable with it all of a sudden?" Reid wondered aloud.

"I don't know. Is there any chance that Noah saw you and kissed Luke for your benefit? Maybe he realizes that he wants Luke back."

"I suppose that he might have seen me and decided to put on a show and my walking away would have played into his plans. I guess he didn't bargain on Luke coming over to explain things to me, huh?" Reid said starting to feel much better about things. Maybe this day wouldn't totally suck!

"No, he didn't and he didn't take into account that you are more mature that he is and would be able to listen to Luke and trust his version of events." Katie said pointedly.

"You're right!" Reid said fully smiling now. "You know what else? He can want Luke back all he likes; but he is not getting him without a major fight from me. I'm going to go and call Luke to make sure that we are okay."

"Good idea, Reid" Katie smiled at her friend.

"Thanks, Katie" Reid said smiling back. With that he went to call Luke from the privacy of his own room.

**A/N that's it for now, please read and review. Comments and concrit is always welcomed and loved. Cheers**!

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	19. Chapter 19

**A/N Reid and Luke are back together stronger than ever. So this chapter did not go as I had planned at all. I wasn't planning on them having make-up sex quite this soon, but Luke had a mind of his own! I hope that you like it. **

Reid quickly picked up his phone and dialled Luke's cell phone before he had a chance to second guess his decision**. **Luke answered on the first ring, relief evident in his voice as he said "hey Reid."

"Hey Luke" Reid responded feeling more confident than he had when he made the call

"How are you feeling this morning?" Luke asked with concern in his voice.

"Somewhat hung-over" Reid replied honestly.

"Did you take the Advil and drink the water, like I suggested?" Luke inquired quietly.

"Yes, Mom and I'm pretty sure that it helped. Thanks, although I'm pretty sure that I could have managed on my own." Reid finished, not willing to give Luke all of the credit.

"So… are we okay?" Luke asked tentatively.

Reid could hear the hope in Luke's voice and it made him feel warm all over. "Yeah Luke, we're okay."

"Good" said Luke smiling into the phone.

"So, where are you Luke? Do you want to get together?" Reid asked.

"I'm at the farm. I just came out to talk to my dad. I'd love to see you. What do you have in mind?"

"I'll come and get you and we'll figure it out from there. How does that sound?"

"Works for me, Reid, I'll see you soon" Luke finished.

"See you soon" Reid confirmed.

Reid quickly grabbed his keys and wallet and left his room. Katie smiled at him when she saw the smirk on Reid's face. "So, things are okay with you and Luke then, are they?"

"Yeah, we managed to get everything sorted" Reid replied, almost shyly. "I've got to get going, Luke's expecting me."

"Have fun" Katie called out to him.

"Thanks, see you later" Reid replied and then closed the door behind him.

As Reid began driving towards the farm he started to think about Noah. He wondered whether or not Noah had kissed Luke simply to get a reaction from Reid. He couldn't blame Noah for wanting Luke back; he thought that Noah was an idiot for ever letting Luke go. Not just letting Luke go, but actively pushing him away. What a moron!

A minute later he was pulling into the driveway of the farm. Luke was standing on the porch watching for him. As soon as Reid had put the car in park, Luke was there waiting to get into the car. Reid quickly unlocked his door and got out of the car so that he could walk around and kiss Luke. Luke was surprised but happy with Reid's gesture. It felt great to be kissing Reid again. Luke quickly snaked his arms around Reid's waist pulling him closer simultaneously slipping his tongue into Reid's mouth. Reid moaned into Luke's mouth losing himself in the kiss. Reid broke the kiss fearing he would have to bend Luke over the hood of his car if he didn't. To his surprise, Luke smiles that secret smile of his and grabs Reid's hand and half leads half drags Reid to the house.

"Are we going to talk to your dad, Luke?" Reid asked feeling somewhat bewildered and embarrassed as his scrubs are now sporting a rather impressive tent.

"Nope" Luke smiles back at Reid.

"Your Grandma?" Reid manages to choke out, horrified.

Luke just smiles enigmatically back at Reid.

As Luke opens the door, he turns back to Reid and says, "We're the only ones here. My dad went to the foundation office to work on some contracts, and my Grandma is still helping my aunt Meg get settled into the hospital. Jack moved back in with Carly and Janet is living in the cottage. We are all alone." Luke finished with a leer at Reid.

"Alone?" Reid whispered back feeling his cock twitch painfully inside his pants.

Luke nodded and led Reid upstairs to his room. Once inside Luke's room Reid closed the door and began kissing Luke again. He was feeling desperate. Reid started to undress himself quickly, wanting to be naked as fast as possible, but Luke put out a hand to stop him.

"This is our very first make-up sex Reid; I want us to take our time and savour this experience."

"Make-up sex" Reid echoed back to Luke in a hoarse whisper. "I've never had make-up sex before, but I think that this is going to be very hot!"

Luke smiled at Reid "you're always hot!" He slowly pulled off Reid's shirt. Reid tried to pull off Luke's shirt, but Luke stopped him. "I just want to focus on you right now" he whispered gently into Reid's ear. That was it for Reid, he knew right then that he would be Luke's forever. He knew that he should be freaking out over this realization, but he just couldn't work up the energy for it. All he could do was moan and respond to Luke who was very slowly and carefully teaching him the benefits of fighting if it led to the incredible sensations that he was feeling right now.

Three hours later, Luke woke up feeling happy and sated, his head resting on Reid's chest. God, it always felt amazing to wake up next to Reid. Reid was still asleep and Luke didn't want to wake him up, so he just lay there enjoying the warmth and comfort that Reid's body provided for him. A few minutes later he felt Reid begin to stir.

"Wow" Reid said. "I love waking up with you, Luke!"

Luke laughed out loud at that. "I was just thinking about how much I like waking up with you too! So, tell me Dr. Oliver how did you enjoy your first foray into make-up sex?"

Reid pretended to mull it over. "Not bad" he replied with a sly grin.

"Not bad?" Luke said with mock indignation. "You're going to pay for that comment, Dr. Oliver. That was amazing and you are going to admit it!" Luke immediately straddled Reid and started tickling him into submission.

Reid almost immediately caved, "okay, okay, it was" he admitted.

"It was what? Say it, Reid" Luke demanded still attacking Reid's sides.

"Amazing, it was amazing," he managed to choke out, between fits of laughter. Luke smiled down at him, "for me too" he admitted honestly.

"It really was fantastic, Luke" Reid smiled back at Luke once he had recovered from the tickle attack.

Luke loved this interaction. Nobody else got to see this playful, caring side of Reid and that made it all the more special for Luke. He loved the sex with Reid, who wouldn't, the man was a god, but he loved the playfulness of the man even more. What Luke loved best was that he could just be himself with Reid and that was enough.

"What are you thinking about, Luke?" Reid asked. He could see the wheels turning in the blonde's head and he wanted to know what was going on with him.

"I was just thinking about how much I love you, Reid. I feel like I can just be me with you and that's enough for you. I've never felt this way with anyone before."

"Except Noah" Reid said quietly. He hated to bring up Noah's name but he felt he had to for self-preservation.

"God no, Reid I never felt anything like this with Noah. I could never just be me with him. Anytime I did something that he didn't like he punished me for it. I always felt that I needed to have my guard up and behave in a way that was acceptable to him, otherwise he would stop loving me."

Reid just stared at Luke, appalled by what he had just heard. God he hated Noah! How could anyone make Luke, his perfect Luke, feel that way. "I love you, Luke" Reid stated emphatically. "You Luke, the way you are, faults and all. Please promise me that you will always remember that and stay true to yourself. You are amazing. I know that we are going to fight, and disagree about things but I know that we will be able to move past our disagreements as long as we remain true to ourselves."

"Thanks, Reid that means so much to me." Luke said smiling at this amazing man.

"Not to mention, that after we fight we will get to have spectacular make-up sex again!" Reid said with a wink.

"Hey, Luke?"

"Yeah"

"I'm starving; any chance I can convince you to go to Al's with me and get some food?"

"Sure, lets have a shower so that we don't reek of sex when we walk in there, okay?"

"Sounds good to me."

Of course the boys showered together so perhaps it took a little longer than necessary, but they were certainly both happy as they dried off and then got dressed. By this time Reid was starving and so he tried to hurry Luke, who was busy fixing his hair.

"Your hair looks fine, Blondie! I'm starving! Hurry up or I will leave without you."

"I'll be done in a minute. You don't want people to see you with someone whose hair is a disaster, do you? Think what impact that would have on your precious reputation." Luke teased, but he hurried to finish up. He'd seen Reid when he was hungry, and it wasn't pretty!

**A/N Please read and review. I have the next chapter planned out, but RL is intruding, again. I will try to upload the next one soon.**


	20. Chapter 20

Reid and Luke were just about to enter into Al's diner when Luke felt Reid's body suddenly tense up. He knew that Reid was remembering watching Noah kiss him last night and he quickly reached over and grabbed Reid's hand. Reid immediately squeezed Luke's hand back reassuring himself that the blonde was with him now, not Noah. Luke felt some of the tension drain from Reid's body and he smiled brightly at him for further reassurance. As the pair entered the diner Luke was careful to steer them away from the booth that he had occupied with Noah to another table. He made sure that the booth that he had occupied with Noah was out of Reid's eye line so that Reid would not torture himself with pictures of the previous night. These careful machinations did not go unnoticed by Reid, and he was grateful for Luke's care and attention to Reid's feelings. He smiled warmly at the blonde as they sat down.

Recognizing that Reid was both starving and ready to order, Luke quickly made eye contact with Janet, the waitress, so that the pair could order. Reid, as usual ordered enough food to feed a small army while Luke ordered an amount expected to feed one person. Even though he was pretty sure that Reid would poach some of his food.

Once they had ordered Reid began to feel more relaxed. The service was pretty good at Al's and he knew that Janet was somewhat competent, so he had faith that he would be fed soon. He looked over at Luke who was staring at him with such love that Reid almost, (but not quite) forgot that he was hungry. He reached across the table in order to offer his hand to Luke to hold. Luke quickly responded, and the warmth of Luke's hand in his quickly spread warmth and comfort throughout his body.

The food arrived right away and both men quickly tucked into their meals. Reid looked pretty happy eating his mountain of food, plus a little bit of Luke's. but Luke noticed just the smallest furrow in Reid's brow. In the past, with Noah, Luke would have ignored the expression and just hoped that the situation would resolve itself, or he would have pestered the other man until Noah became so frustrated with Luke that the problem would have grown exponentially. As a result, Luke was a little unsure how to proceed with Reid, but then he reminded himself that he could just ask Reid gently and see what happened.

"What's bothering you, Reid" Luke inquired.

"Who says anything's bothering me?" Reid replied, a little taken aback that Luke read him so well.

Luke just smiled back at Reid patiently and waited for the other man to come clean.

Reid sighed heavily, "I was just thinking about Noah," he began carefully.

"What about Noah?" Luke probed gently.

"I was just wondering if he saw me, before he kissed you and that it was my presence that provoked him into action." Reid replied awkwardly.

To his surprise, he saw that Luke was nodding his head in agreement. "I have thought about that too. I don't like to think that Noah could be so devious. He really is a good guy," Luke paused as he saw Reid rolling his eyes at that comment. "But his kissing me like that at all, let alone in public is just so out of character for him. Looking back he seemed almost desperate to kiss me, which is really strange behaviour for him."

"Why would it be strange for him to be desperate to kiss you, Luke? That seems to be the only reasonable part of this whole situation."

Luke blushed furiously; he hated talking about Noah with Reid. "Noah never really initiated anything uh physical with me. Looking back I can see that he was very passive aggressive with me. I would always initiate, but he would always control how much affection we shared. It often left me unsatisfied and feeling like I had to beg just to get some attention." Luke continued sadly.

"What an idiot!" Reid blurted out. He hated to see Luke so upset. He quickly leaned over and kissed Luke soundly. "God, I love kissing you, I'm not sure how he ever resisted your beautiful mouth. I know that I can't."

Luke blushed again, but this time with pleasure at the warmth in Reid's words and expression. It was so reassuring to hear Reid say that to him. With Reid, he was able to just be himself and that was enough. Yes, he would make mistakes and so would Reid, but they seemed to be able to talk things out without Luke feeling belittled. For the first time Luke realized that Reid treated him like an equal. It was like an epiphany for him and he beamed a huge smile at Reid.

"Uh… what's going on, Luke? What are you thinking about?" Reid asked nervously. He loved it when Luke smiled at him like that, but he was a little worried about what had prompted it. He hoped that it wasn't thoughts of Noah.

"I love you" Luke said simply. "I really, really love you!"

Luke said this with such sincerity that Reid couldn't help but feel his heart melt a little bit more. He smiled back at Luke, "I love you too," he replied happily. 'God, I am such a sap and I don't even care' "who am I?" Reid wondered aloud.

Luke just grinned back at him, happier than he had been in a long time.

"So… what are we going to do about Noah?" Reid asked only half joking.

"What do you mean?" Luke asked.

"Well, I want him to know that it is not okay for him to kiss you, especially if it is just to get a rise out of me."

"Feeling a little possessive, are we?" Luke teased, secretly pleased.

"Yeah, I guess that I am." Reid admitted quietly.

"Works for me!"

"So, again what do you think we should do about Noah?" Reid asked again.

"Well, I wanted to confront him, ask him if he did, in fact, know that you would see him kiss me. If the answer is yes, I want to know why he would do that, why he would want to hurt me in that way. I want to be friends with him, but I won't be able to do that if he actively tries to sabotage our relationship."

"Do you think that he will admit it to you?"

"Yes, I think so. Noah has a pretty strong moral code, and he doesn't lie. I'm sure that in his mind he was completely justified in his actions and he has probably convinced himself that he did it for me. I know that it sounds crazy, but that's how Noah is." Luke stated with a shrug.

"Do you want to talk to Noah, alone?"

"Yes, if that's okay with you."

"Sure Luke, I trust you, but I also want to make it crystal clear that we are together and that his little stunt had no affect on our relationship. I want him to know that he doesn't have a chance with you."

"Oh, I'm sure that he doesn't want another chance with me."

Reid simply cocked an eyebrow at Luke.

"Okay, okay, maybe he does think that he wants me back, but he's wrong. I am not the right person for him, just as he is not the right person for me. Our time together is behind us."

Reid felt relieved, he couldn't help himself, hearing Luke say those words with such conviction made Reid feel lighter, as though an imaginary weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"So when are you planning on talking to him?" Reid asked with a wicked smile on his face.

"Well, I could pop into Java after we're done here to see if he's working, If he is, I will ask when he will be done and arrange to meet with him then."

"Okay, I will walk over with you, but I won't go in." Reid smiled; he was starting to formulate a plan to make sure that Noah knew the score. That way, if Noah crossed the line again, he would know there would be consequences to his actions.

The boys quickly finished up their food and Luke paid their bill while Reid left the tip. As soon as they were settled up they headed over to Java. True to his word, Reid stayed out of sight, while Luke went it to look for Noah.

"Hey Luke, how are you?" Noah beamed as soon as he saw Luke saunter into Java. He took it as a very good sign that Luke had come in.

"Hey Noah, I was hoping that you would be working today." Noah's smile got even bigger. 'I knew we were going to get back together' he noticed that Luke didn't look all that happy about seeing him, but he ignored that fact.

"What time do you get off?" Luke asked.

Noah looked at his watch, "I'm almost done, I'm off in half an hour, why?"

"I think we should talk, I'll come back for you in thirty minutes. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that sounds great to me!" Noah replied, convinced that Luke was going to beg him to get back together. He wondered how hard he should be on Luke. He decided he would play a little hard to get, as Luke needed to be punished for dating that horrid Dr. Oliver. Noah shuddered inwardly at the thought of the other man's name. In the end though, he knew that he would take Luke back.

Having arranged a time with Noah, Luke went outside to confer with Reid. "He's off in half an hour, so I told him I would pick him up then. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes. Where are you going to go to talk to him?"

"I don't want to go too far, I think that I will grab a coffee and then sit on that bench with him. Why do you want to know?" Luke asked suspiciously.

"I want to be close by so that I can watch the interaction. When you are done talking to him I want to be there so that I can let him know that we are together and that he needs to accept that. I am not going to dictate who you can and cannot be friends with, but I am not willing to have someone around who disrespects what we have."

"What are you going to do?" Luke narrowed his eyes at Reid.

"I'm not sure yet, I'll have to see what the situation warrants, but I won't try anything physical with him. I really don't want to get punched again."

"Okay, well let's figure out where you should hide, so that you can see us, but we won't be able to see you. Thanks for letting me do this on my own, but staying close by to back me up. It means a lot to me."

Reid leaned over and kissed Luke, to show that Luke meant a lot to him.

"Okay, Bond; let's go find a good hiding spot for you." Luke smiled as they searched for the perfect position.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N Well I am still pretty angry with the show right now, I can't believe they have killed off Reid, especially in such an unsatisfying manner! Anyway this chapter is dedicated to KittyBlackCat who is hoping that Noah will get a reality check. I hope that this chapter satisfies that need. Thanks to everyone who has left me such encouraging feed back. I truly appreciate it. Thanks for sticking with this story, it's not over yet**.

At ten to three Luke walked back into Java. Noah had a big smile on his face when he saw Luke walk back in. He was really excited about getting back together with the blonde. He wasn't exactly ready to forgive Luke for his dalliance with Reid, but he would try to be generous with him. Deep in his heart he knew that Luke was worth it.

"I'll be off in ten, Luke. Do you want something to drink?"

"Yeah! That would be great. Can I have a large hot chocolate with whipped cream?" Luke asked.

"Sure. Do you want it for here or to go?"

"To go" Luke responded quickly.

Noah made Luke's drink and poured himself a coffee and five minutes later they were walking out the door.

Luke knew where Reid was hiding, if you could call it that, so he deliberately steered Noah in the opposite direction to a bench where they could sit and talk. Unbeknownst to Noah, Reid and Luke had picked this bench as it was in a very public spot so that Noah was unlikely to try anything. It was also easy for Reid to keep an eye on the discussion without revealing his presence to Noah.

"Did you want to go somewhere more private?" Noah asked, not entirely comfortable with the openness of this location. He wanted to be alone with Luke.

"No this is great" Luke replied, with what he hoped was a winning smile.

Noah sighed, 'well once I take him back we can go somewhere and have a private celebration' Noah assured himself.

"Noah, I need to ask you something, and I really need you to be honest with me when you answer, okay?"

"Of course, I'll be honest with you" Noah answered, a little shocked that Luke would even ask such a question.

"Last night when we were at Al's, did you see Reid looking in the window before you kissed me?"

Noah suddenly understood why Luke had asked for honesty. He took in a deep breath to calm his nerves before replying. "Yes, I knew Reid was watching us."

"Is that why you kissed me? So that Reid would see us?"

"Yes, I wanted Reid to see us kiss, Luke. Don't you see? I knew that if he saw us kiss, he would see the connection, the bond that we have and he would know that we belonged together and then he would just move on. That way we could get back together. I know that's what you want too."

Luke just stared coldly at Noah for a moment. Luke took a deep breath and counted to ten silently so that he could be rational with Noah.

"Well, Noah I'm not sure he saw the mythical connection that you speak of, but he did think that I was cheating on him. You really hurt him with that stunt and in doing so you really hurt me."

"Oh come on, Luke. I didn't hurt Reid. He would have to have feelings for you in order to be hurt by seeing us kiss. It's not like he loves you, he's just using you for sex!"

Luke had to count to twenty-five this time before he could continue. "Noah, what Reid and I have is none of your business and I am not going to defend our relationship to you."

Noah just raised his eyebrows and snickered.

"Yes, Noah, Reid and I are in a relationship."

"Luke, how is that even possible, the guys and asshole and you know it! He can't possibly really care about you. He's a highly successful neurosurgeon and you; well you didn't even finish college. What kind of foundation is that for a relationship?"

Luke sighed heavily and tried to explain things again. "Noah, Reid and I just fit together and you and I …didn't."

Noah cocked and eyebrow "oh, so you're saying that he's better in bed than I am. Well he should be, he looks like he's had plenty of experience. I hope that you are using condoms, you don't want to catch anything from him. Hell, he's probably still sleeping with other men every chance he gets. No offense, Luke but you're really not that great in the sack."

Luke just rolled his eyes. "Fine Noah, you want to know about our sex life, I'll tell you. It's fantastic. Reid is a fantastic lover, who is caring and considerate and always makes sure that my needs are met" Luke said pointedly. "Reid always makes me feel desirable and hot. He treats me like I am the best that he has ever had, and he has had quite a few. So good luck finding someone better than me!" Luke blurted out through gritted teeth.

When Luke had finished his rant he saw that Noah looked stricken and he felt instantly guilty.

Sighing heavily, he continued "I'm sorry, that was probably an over share, Noah when I was talking about Reid and I fitting together, I was not talking sexually, I was talking about us as people. All those things about me that drive you crazy, Reid actually enjoys."

"Like what?" asked Noah, still pouting.

"Reid likes it when I take care of him. He finds it charming and endearing whereas you find it smothering and annoying."

"Not always" Noah tried to defend himself. "I just don't like it when you smother me. I'm sure that Reid doesn't want to be smothered either." Noah said with a look of utter distaste on his handsome face.

"This is what I'm talking about, Reid never feels smothered by the things that I do. I'm not saying that you are a bad person, or that it's your fault, what I am saying is that we don't fit together well. You need someone who doesn't need to take care of you, someone who will marvel at your independence. That's not me!"

"I love you, Luke I can change, I can appreciate you more. I don't want to find someone else, I just want you."

"I understand that you believe that, but it isn't true. I don't want you to change, Noah you are amazing, just the way you are. You're just not right for me. That's not a bad thing, because I have Reid and he is right for me." Luke said as gently as he could.

"Do you really believe that Luke? What about all of your shit? Do you think Reid is going to stand by you the way that I did? Do you? What about when he finds out about your drinking and your kidney and how you got thrown out of Oakdale U? Do you really think anyone but me could except all of your flaws? When he sees who you really are he'll leave you in a New York minute. There's no way that anyone but me would put up with all of that crap." Noah yelled at Luke vehemently.

Reid had had enough of Noah attacking Luke. He had stayed away as long as he could. He could tell by Luke's body language that Noah was hurting him, and that just wasn't right. He put a comforting hand on Luke's shoulder to show Luke that he was there to support him.

"You're wrong, Noah. I already know all about Luke's difficulties and I don't see them as flaws. He is an incredible man with a huge heart that I'm not sure that I deserve. I know for a fact that you don't deserve it. You are an asshole Noah and you are lucky that Luke put up with you for as long as he did. All he ever wanted was to love and support you and you were too stupid and stubborn to accept it. Fortunately, I am brilliant, and I know enough to let Luke love me for as long as he can." Reid glared at Noah. "Come on, Luke let's go home." With that Luke stood up, beaming at Reid, put his arms around Reid's waist and kissed him hard on the mouth. Finally remembering that Noah was there, Luke turned to see the other man gaping at him and said "see ya later, Noah." Reid walked off with their arms around each other.

Noah sat on the bench for a long time wondering what had happened. 'Where was his Luke, the one who always wanted to be with him? The one who was so sweet, and who would never had said those terrible things to Noah. He started to realize that his Luke, was gone. Luke really was with Reid now.' Noah finally got up from the bench and headed home, alone.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N Well thanks for sticking with this story. Sorry that it has taken me so long to update it. I'm not quite sure where to go from here. I know how I want this story to end and I'm not there yet. So I think that this will be a transitional chapter for me and the boys. LOL**

**Let me know what you think. Thanks again for all of the amazing feedback.**

**This chapter picks up right where the last one ended.**

"Thanks for rescuing me" Luke said with a small sigh. He really wished that he didn't need to be looked after, especially by Reid. Luke was acutely aware of the age difference and he hated feeling like a stupid little kid who needed protecting.

"I didn't rescue you, Luke. You are not some weak damsel in distress who needed me to save you. Noah was way out of line. He should never have said those things to you, hell, he should never have even thought those things about you, but he did, I heard them and I couldn't let those comments stand. Especially, since he said I would leave you if I knew any of that stuff about you." Reid stated and leaned over and kissed Luke lovingly on the mouth.

Luke smiled at Reid. "Thanks for saying that, but you know that Noah wasn't entirely wrong. I am a mess. I'm not sure that it is fair for me to dump all of my shit on you. I really don't want to be a burden to you."

"Shut the fuck up, Luke" Reid said "you are not a burden to me. God Luke you have got to get a grip on how great you are. God knows I'm no picnic, but I'm not letting you off the hook so smarten up."

"Thanks"

"Stop thanking me, for God's sake. I haven't done anything to be thanked for."

"What are you talking about? No one has ever stood up for me the way you just did. Noah always blamed me for everything. He has never even apologized for blaming me for the fireworks episode. The closest he came to apologizing was saying that he needed someone to blame and I was handy. You were the first person who indicated that it wasn't my fault, that it was an accident and therefore no one's fault. I don't know if you realize how important that statement was to me."

"Luke, Noah is an idiot. He never appreciated you the way you deserved so you have to stop putting stock in the things that he said and did. I'm sorry that he hurt you, but you need to move on."

"Are you telling me that I can't be friends with Noah any longer?"

"No, I am not going to dictate who you can and cannot be friends with, but I want you to be happy, not just with me, but with yourself. Noah, from what I just saw, was very critical of you, even when you didn't deserve it. You need to find away to feel good about yourself despite what Noah or anyone says."

"Even if it's you?" Luke teased.

"Especially me" Reid answered seriously. "I know that we are going to argue and disagree, but I don't want to say anything that will make you feel badly about yourself. I want to support you, not knock you down.

"I know what you have gone through and I'm sorry that you have suffered so much, but I don't see your pain as a fault or a weakness within you. You are one of the strongest people I know. I only wish that you felt that strength."

Luke grabbed Reid and kissed him, hard. "I love you" he said simply "do you have any idea how much I love you" Luke said staring deeply into Reid's eyes.

"I love you too" Reid said quietly "so much. Now, let's go and get something to eat. I'm starving."

"I'm shocked, Reid" Luke teased, "how about picking up a pizza and then heading to my place to eat it. My mom is out of town on business and the kids are at the farm tonight."

"Sounds good to me" Reid said with a smile.

Later that night as the two lay in bed together, happy and sated, Luke murmured "I love being with you, Reid."

"Yeah, me too" agreed Reid.

"I wish that we could be together all of the time."

"Really?"

"Uh…yeah, of course I do." Luke answered. 'Oh crap did I just put pressure on Reid; is he going to freak out?'

Reid was silent for a few minutes as he weighed his options. Finally, he decided to bite the bullet and just go ahead and ask for what he wanted.

"So, Luke I was wondering if you would consider getting a place with me? I know that it's a little bit soon, and if you don't feel comfortable that's okay, I understand."

Reid was relieved to see a huge smile take over Luke's face.

"Are you asking me to live with you?"

"Yes."

"Then yes Dr. Oliver I would love to move in with you!"


	23. Chapter 23

A/N This chapter is going to be light and fun. I want my boys to be happy.

Pairing is Luke and Reid

Rating is PG 13

Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed this story. I hope that you enjoy this chapter.

It had been a week since Reid had asked Luke to move in with him, but since then – nothing. Luke had called a realtor the day after Reid had made his surprise request. The realtor had had a million questions for Luke which he needed to pass on to Reid, but Reid had never mentioned living together again and secretly Luke was afraid that Reid had changed his mind.

Luke was meeting Reid for dinner tonight at Metro and he was determined to feel Reid out about living together. He decided not to bring all the listings that the realtor had left with him, because he didn't want to freak Reid out.

At 5:30 Luke started getting ready for his date with Reid. He wanted to look good when he brought up the subject of co-habitation. He put on his charcoal gray dress shirt with the black stripe running through it. He undid the top two buttons and then he undid a third. He wanted to have Reid's attention, after all. He paired his shirt with black linen dress pants that fit him perfectly in the butt. Not too tight, but just tight enough to accentuate his important parts. Satisfied with his outfit, he turned to his hair. He had just had a hair cut so it was more manageable than usual. He decided just to add some gel to give it a bit of body. He didn't add too much, because he knew how much Reid liked running his fingers through it and he didn't want it to feel stiff and gross. Finally satisfied with his appearance Luke put on his black linen blazer, grabbed his keys, cell phone and wallet and headed out the door to pick up Reid.

The drive to Katie's was a short one made even shorter by Luke's nervousness. He tried to calm down and tell himself to breathe, but nothing helped, by the time he got to Katie's he was a nervous wreck. So he sat in his car for a few minutes in order to compose himself before seeing Reid.

Meanwhile, Reid had seen Luke pull up and was wondering what the hell was taking him so long to get into the house. Reid wondered if he should go out and check on Luke. What if he's having some sort of health crisis and can't get out of the car? Oh my God, who am I? Reid decided that he would give Luke five more minutes to get into the house and then he would go out and check on him. It took every last ounce of self control to watch the clock and not just rush out the door.

Finally, just as five minutes was up, Reid heard the distinctive sound of a car door closing. Reid peeked out the window and spied Luke wandering toward the front door. Reid breathed a deep sigh of relief as he saw that Luke was okay. Reid sat down on the couch and picked up a medical journal so that he could pretend that he had been relaxing when Luke knocked on the door.

Luke finally knocked on the door. Reid wanted to leap up to answer it, but he forced himself to move at a leisurely pace. When he opened the door, his breath caught in his chest. Luke looked so beautiful. Reid grabbed the younger man and dragged him into the apartment slamming the door behind them. Before the door was even closed, Reid's lips were attached to Luke's, his tongue running over Luke's lower lip begging for entrance. Luke opened his mouth and deepened the kiss. Finally, due to their mutual need for oxygen, they broke the kiss. "Hello, Reid" Luke said with a big smile on his face.

"Hi Luke" Reid responded with an equally large smile.

Reid leaned in to kiss Luke again, but Luke turned away causing Reid to kiss his cheek.

"What's up, Luke?" Reid asked petulantly.

"Don't we have a dinner reservation in fifteen minutes? If we start kissing again we aren't going to make it to dinner, are we?"

"Would that be so bad?"

"No, it would be amazing, but come on I want to go out and show off my hot boyfriend."

"Well who could blame you for that?"

"So let's go!"

Reid grabbed his black leather jacket and the two got into Luke's car. It was a short drive to Metro. This was Oakdale, after all so everything was a short drive. Reid decided to make the most of this short trip and he reached over and put his hand on Luke's thigh. He felt Luke shiver when he touched him and so he began to lightly graze Luke's thigh up and back inching toward Luke's groin area with every upward stroke. Reid stared straight ahead, pretending not to notice Luke's reaction to his touch.

All too soon Luke was pulling into the parking lot at Metro. "Ready to go in, Luke?" Reid asked innocently.

Luke just glared at Reid, took a deep breath and visualized his parents having sex, to calm himself down.

Reid smirked and visualized cutting into a brain to calm himself down.

"Okay, let's go" Luke said, sufficiently calmed down. He grabbed Reid's hand and leaned in to whisper "to be continued?" into Reid's ear and then nipped at his earlobe. This time it was Reid's turn to shudder with pleasure.

"Definitely, to be continued" Reid whispered back, nuzzling Luke's neck.

The boys walked into Metro and were immediately led to their table. They were lucky that they had a fairly private table. Luke knew that he needed to bring up the living arrangements but at the moment he was too busy gazing into Reid's blue, blue eyes.

The waiter came by to take their order, and for once Reid wasn't focused on what he was going to eat. They asked for a few more minutes and then they perused the menus. Reid chose an 8 oz rare fillet mignon with a trio of mushrooms, wild rice and Szechuan green beans. Luke decided on a 6 oz peppercorn steak, medium rare, with a tossed green salad in a raspberry vinaigrette.

While they were waiting for their food Luke decided it was time to bring up moving in together.

"So Reid,,,"

"Yes Luke"

"Uh…didyoustillwanttllivetogether?" Luke blurted out in a rush.

"What? Slow down I can't understand you." Reid said soothingly, reaching for Luke's hand.

Luke started again "do you still want to live with me?" Luke asked staring straight into Reid's eyes.

"Of course I still want to live with you. Why would you think otherwise?"

"Well, you asked me a week ago and then didn't say anything more. I phoned a realtor and she had a million questions for me and I realized that I had a lot of questions to ask you."

"You went to a realtor?"

"Yes" Luke replied quietly, blushing a pretty shade of pink.

Reid just smiled at Luke. "So ask me all of your questions."

Luke visibly relaxed at Reid's response. "Well first of all, do you want to move into a house or an apartment?"

Just then the food arrived and Reid was able to consider his answer while he began eating.

"Well, I was thinking about an apartment, but it might be nice to have the space of a house. What do you think, Luke?"

"I like the idea of moving into a house with you, but that leads to the next question. Do you want to rent or buy?"

"Wow, you are thinking about buying a house with me? That's a big step."

"Sorry Reid, I don't mean to push you into anything, these are the questions that have come up."

"Luke, you're not pushing me, I just hadn't really thought this through. How do you feel about buying a house with me."

"I would love to buy a house with you, Reid. I like the idea of owning real estate together, but you need to be comfortable with the idea too."

"Why don't you look at houses, both for rent and to buy and see what you like? Once you have narrowed it down to a few options I will look at them and we can choose from there. Is that okay with you?"

"Sure, that sounds great. I see you have given me all the leg work." Luke said, but he was smiling.

"You don't mind, do you? I just can't imagine looking at a ton of places, I'll go cross eyed and just pick one so that I can be done."

"True, I will enjoy looking at all of these places, imagining us living there will be fun for me."

"So now that we've got that settled, how about some dessert?"

"You go ahead Reid, I'm full thanks. I do have some more questions for you though."

"Okay, just let me figure out what I am going to have for dessert and then I will answer more of your questions."

Reid perused the dessert menu carefully. To the casual observer it would seem like this was the first treat that Reid had allowed himself in a month, but Luke knew that he had had dessert last night at dinner and probably this afternoon with lunch. Luke took the time to figure out what order to ask his questions.

The waiter came by and took Reid's order; he had decided to have the crème brulee with fresh berries and whipped cream. Luke's mouth watered but he knew better than to expect Reid to share.

Luke reached out and took Reid's hand "so what do you need your house to have?"

"Don't you mean our house?"

"Okay, what do you need to have in our house?"

"Well, I need it to have a large master bedroom for us and I'd like that to have an ensuite bathroom with a large tub and large separate shower. I think that it should have three other bedrooms, two to use as offices for us and then one to use as a spare bedroom in case someone comes to visit."

"You would let someone stay with us?" Luke asked surprised.

"Well, Luke you have a huge family it seems inevitable that someone will come knocking at our door demanding shelter, I would rather have the space since I am sure that you are going to let them in."

"I'm glad that you are planning ahead, Reid."

"I would also like a big kitchen, with a state of the art fridge to hold all of my sandwich fixings. I would also like a media room for my plasma TV. That's about all that I need."

"What about a living room and a dining room?" Luke asked curiously.

"You asked what I needed and I told you. Living rooms and dining rooms are extra's in my opinion."

"What about a pool? I would really like an in ground pool."

"Ah there you are Richie Rich. Alright look for a house with a pool" Reid said knowing he would agree to whatever Luke wanted.

Just then the waiter appeared with Reid's dessert and two spoons.

"Two spoons, huh? The waiter thinks that I'm going to share with you."

"Ah, but he doesn't know you like I do."

Reid just smiled and passed Luke the extra spoon. "You can have one spoonful, if you'd like." Reid offered.

"No, that's okay I don't want to take the food right out of your mouth. At least not in that way" he added quietly with a small smile.

"So Luke, you haven't asked me what the budget should be for this house of ours. Shouldn't that be one of your questions?"

"I'm not worried about the budget, Reid. After all I am Richie Rich." Luke said smiling warmly at Reid.

"We'll talk more about the budget when we figure out which house we like, deal?"

"Sure" Luke replied. "How is your crème brulee?"

"It's delicious, here have a taste" Reid said and he leaned over to kiss Luke so that Luke could taste the smooth creaminess in Reid's mouth.

"Mmm that is good" enjoying the taste of Reid as much as the dessert. "Are you just about ready to go?"

"Yes, after all we have some unfinished business to take care of at Katie's."

Luke signalled the waiter to get their bill paid the amount owing with a large tip and the two men headed for home.


	24. Chapter 24

This story is almost finished. I am planning on about two more chapters. Thanks to everyone who has continued to read this story. This chapter is light and hopefully fun. Please let me know what you think! Thanks again!

Once Luke had the go ahead from Reid he took on the job of finding the perfect house with a vengeance. He contacted Carol, his realtor, the day after he had dinner with Reid in order to get the ball rolling.

Carol had wanted to meet Luke at the Lilypad, but he did not want any interference from his family, particularly his mother. Instead, Luke and Carol agreed to meet at Java at 10:00.

Luke arrived ten minutes early and was busy organizing his notes when Carol walked in. Luke stood to greet her with a handshake and asked what she would like to drink. Luke, then went to the counter and ordered their coffee's.

Once back at the table, Luke quickly got out his notes.

"Have you decided whether you want a house or an apartment or townhouse, yet?" Carol inquired.

"Yes, we talked it over and we have decided that we would like to get a house. I am leaning towards buying a place, but Reid wants me to look at rental properties as well."

"Well, that's doable," she replied. "However, I can only show you properties that are for sale, I am not as versed in rental properties. I can ask around my office for recommendations, but your best bet is really to look in the local papers to see what is available."

"No problem," Luke replied. "I'm not surprised that you can't show me any rental properties."

"Do you have a list of things that you are looking for in a house?" Carol asked.

"Yes, I do. I don't have a specific style in mind, but the house needs to have a large kitchen, preferably with state of the art appliances, but those can always be upgraded as long as the space is big enough to accommodate them. It is especially important that we have room for a very large fridge."

"Oh, are you and your partner gourmet chefs?"

"No, not at all," Luke said with a laugh, "but food is extremely important to my partner, and he needs a large fridge to hold all of it in."

"Oh, I see," Carol responded, looking very confused by this explanation. "What other requirements do you have?"

"Well, we need a large master bedroom with an ensuite. The ensuite needs to have a large jetted bathtub as well as a large separate shower. We each need a home office and I think that we should have two guest bedrooms as well."

"This is going to be fairly expensive, by the sound of things. Do you have a budget in mind?"

"No, not really, I am confident that we will be able to afford almost any home. What's most important to me is that it is the right home for us."

Carol looked sceptical, but kept her opinions to herself. She decided that she would google Luke when she got back to the office and run a credit check before she wasted time finding homes that he couldn't possibly afford.

"What other features are you looking for in the house?"  
"Well Reid wants an extensive media room and I would like a formal dining room and living room. Oh and I would also like an in ground pool. I think that's about it to start."

"Well that's quite a list Mr. Snyder. I will put together a list of properties and set up viewings for you and your partner as soon as possible."

"That sounds great, Carol, except I will be the only one looking at the houses at this stage. Once I narrow down the choices we will bring Reid in for the final decision."

"Sounds good to me, I'll call you when I have everything set up."

"Great, I look forward to hearing from you."

They both stood up and shook hands and said good-bye.

Two weeks later Carol and Luke were looking at their tenth house together. As soon as Luke walked in he knew that this was the house. He tried to hide his enthusiasm, but Carol sensed victory and was relieved that she had finally found something that suited Luke. This was Oakdale after all, and there weren't that many homes in the whole area that would satisfy all of Luke's criteria let alone one's that were on the market. This had been a much more difficult task than she had initially anticipated.

Luke took a moment to quickly call Reid.

"I've found our new home, when can you come and see it?" Luke asked as soon as Reid answered his phone.

"Are you there now?"

"Yes, are you available? The house is only about ten minutes away from the hospital."

"Okay, give me the address and I will see you in about fifteen minutes."

Luke gave the address to Reid and then smiled at Carol. "Reid is on his way over now. Will you please take me through the rest of the house?"

"Are you sure you don't want to wait for Reid? We have plenty of time."

"No thanks, I'd like to see as much as I can before he gets here."

Carol nodded and began taking him through the house.

Just as Luke was inspecting the master bedroom, the doorbell rang, signalling Reid's arrival.

Reid waited to be let into the house and knew that he was in trouble. He already liked the house and he hadn't even set foot in it. The door flew open and Luke reached out and put his arms around Reid and kissed him thoroughly on the mouth, before hugging him closely and whispering, "Welcome home," into his ear.

Reid wasn't sure if it was the sentiment alone, or the combination of Luke's hot breath on his ear, Luke's strong arms wrapped tightly around his body and the sweet words reverberating around his head, but something inside of Reid changed in that instant. His heart clenched and a new warmth suffused his body and he finally felt like he was truly coming home. Reid knew that it wasn't the house it was Luke. Luke was his home.

"God, I love you Luke," Reid whispered into Luke's ear. He hadn't really meant to say those words they had just tumbled out.

Luke squeezed Reid tighter, "I love you too, so so much," and then they were kissing, completely lost in each other and the dizzying feeling of happiness that was just so them. Things would have gotten out of control if Carol hadn't cleared her throat, loudly, behind them. They immediately pulled apart, Luke blushing furiously and Reid looking smug.

"Would you boys like to see the house now?" Carol queried with a small smile on her lips.

Luke nodded.

Reid grabbed Luke's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Lead the way."

As she led the two men through the beautiful house, they both fell more and more in love with it. They toured the downstairs first. Luke loved the rich cherrywood floors that permeated the first floor of the house. The formal living room to the right of the stairs had a high ceiling with a big picture window to allow in plenty of light. There was a gas fireplace that had a black marble front which he loved. The room wasn't that large, but it was beautiful.

From the living room they moved into the kitchen, which was enormous. Reid was immediately drawn to the fridge. Reid stood transfixed as he stared lovingly at the most beautiful appliance that he had ever seen. He was sold.

Carol was nattering on about the quality of the appliances. She mentioned the value of having a double oven. She talked about how great it was to have a butcher block style island with it's own built in sink. She explained why having built in cooling racks was a godsend for bakers, and wondered why they weren't standard in all homes.

Luke listened patiently to all of these selling points, not having the heart to tell her that neither he nor Reid really cooked, let alone baked.

Reid finally came out of his trance muttering the word 'sandwiches" to himself, as Luke gently guided him away from his nirvana into the eating area. It was a cozy space with a bay window which allowed for plenty of light. Luke could easily imagine having breakfast there with Reid and reading the paper together on lazy Sunday afternoons.

There was a nice size family room off of the kitchen that had a wall that was just begging for a flat screen TV. This room also had a fireplace that made it seem cozy despite it's large size. Beside the family room and across from the living room was the formal dining room. This room was beautiful. It had French doors that added a certain elegance to the space. Luke could imagine having both romantic dinners in here with just the two of them as well as big festive family dinners.

Back in the foyer, they noticed the small, yet elegant powder room and the door beside it which housed the laundry room and led to the three car garage.

The three then headed upstairs. Carol was about to show them the master bedroom, but Luke shook his head no, as he wanted to end the tour with that room. Carol nodded and led them down the hall to the den. It was a large comfortable room that Reid thought would be perfect for his office. "I think this space would make a great home office for you," Luke said, reading his mind.

"Me too," Reid responded with a smile.

The room beside it was a smaller bedroom that Luke thought would be great as one of the guest rooms. The main bathroom was beside it, which had beautiful fixtures, including a double sink and a soaker tub, with a shower.

On the other side of the bathroom was another, slightly larger bedroom.

Across the hall from these three rooms was a larger room that was currently used as a library. Luke thought that this room would be perfect for his office. Reid saw the look on Luke's face and knew exactly what he was thinking. "This is a great space for you, Luke. You will be able to spend hours in here writing."

Luke nodded, smiling happily at his partner.

Finally it was time to see the master bedroom. This was a huge space. Reid was pleased that there was definatley room in here for a King size bed. Luke could imagine spending lazy mornings making in love to Reid in this glorious space.

Carol was chattering away about the design features of the room, and while the boys were pleased with them on some level, both of their minds were on other things. Oblivious to Luke and Reid's private thoughts Carol pointed certain things out about the French doors that led out to a small balcony that allowed for plenty of light. The huge walk in closet for all of their clothes. The high ceilings that made the room seem that much bigger. Finally noticing that the two men were distracted she led them to the master bathroom.

The ensuite bathroom was a thing of beauty. There was a huge jetted tub, big enough for the two of them. Above the tub was a wall of glass blocks that allowed for light as well as privacy. Across from the tub was a huge separate shower, with two shower heads, one on either side. In between the bath and shower was the toilet and the bidet. Finally across from those, at the end of the bathtub was a beautiful counter with two sinks.

Carol was nattering on about the quality of the tile floor, the advantage of having electric heat in here, the fact that the towel racks were heated, blah, blah, blah…

All Luke and Reid could focus on was how amazing it would be to have shower sex in here.

Carol, finally recognizing the look on Reid's face, cleared her throat once more and herded the two men downstairs in order to avert disaster.

She took them on a quick tour of the property and showed them the pool. Luke was thrilled that it was a fairly good size and Reid was happy to note the hot tub that was situated on the patio, just off the kitchen.

"Do you have any questions?"

Luke looked at Reid and Reid nodded.

"We want this house. Please make it happen.. We will want to take possession of the house as soon as possible," Luke said.

Carol forced herself to remain calm. 'Deep breaths' she told herself, in order to calm down. She had known that they liked the place, but was very surprised that they would move so quickly.

"I'll draw up an offer for 10% less than the current asking price, and let you know what happens from there."

"Fine, I'll expect to hear from you soon," Luke said shaking her hand.

Carol nodded still feeling a bit shell shocked and shook Reid's hand.

"I'll be in touch with you soon," Carol said leading them out of the house.

Luke and Reid watched as Carol drove away and took a few minutes to look at what was to become their beautiful new home.

"So i guess the whole rental thing didn't work out? We're really going to buy a place together?" Reid asked, feeling a tiny bit nervous.

Luke hung his head, "I did look at some rental properties, but honestly they were awful. I really want to buy a place with you Reid. I want to share a home with you, a home that is ours."

Reid melted at the sincerity of Luke's tone and the expression of deep love on his face, "I want that too, Luke." They both smiled at just how amazing it was that they were here together at the same place, emotionally. Luke felt like he was going to burst with happiness as he leaned over and kissed Reid, deeply.

"Well it looks like there is just one more thing to do," Reid said, smiling at Luke.

"What's that?" Luke asked feeling confused.

"You're going to have to tell Mommy that you are moving out."

Luke's face fell, "yeah, I've been avoiding that talk, but I guess that I had better get it over with," he sighed.

"Do you want me to come with you, so that we can tell her together?"

"No, I think that I had better handle this on my own. Thanks for offering though."

Reid kissed Luke, as he had no words to fully express how happy he was not to have to be there when Luke explained things to Lily.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Well this is the chapter where Luke tells Lily. Lily has some growing up to do, but I will try not to kill anyone off to allow for this. LOL There are no character deaths in this chapter! Or the next!**

**I hope that you like this one. Please let me know what you think.**

**These are not my characters, **

**All mistakes are mine.**

One week later, Carol phoned Luke with good news, "congratulations Luke! Your offer was accepted and you and Reid are free to take possession in three months."

"Thanks Carol, that's great news! I will have my lawyer contact you today to make sure that all of the legalities are in place."

Once he had contacted his lawyer, he immediately phoned Reid to fill him in.

"Wow, Luke we'll have to go out and celebrate tonight. I get off at 8 do you want to go out for dinner?"

"Sure, that sounds great. Hey, can I stay over at your place tonight?"

"Yes, we can just have take-out and stay in tonight if that's what you want," Reid added hopefully.

Luke laughed, "no, I want to go out, it's just that I'm going to tell my mom today, now that it's official, and I think that she may need some time by herself to adjust. She's not going to be happy and I don't want to have to defend my choices to her."

"I'm sorry that this is so difficult for you. You can stay with me for as long as you want."

"Thanks."

"When are you going to talk to your mom?"

"She's coming home to have lunch with me, and I'm going to tell her then."

"Call me after you talk to her so that I know that you're okay."

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Luke replied, feeling incredibly touched by Reid's concern for him.

Reid rolled his eyes, "just call me, okay?"

"I'll call you, I promise," Luke responded with a smile on his face. "I love you."

"How could you not?" Reid replied. "Hey Luke... I love you too."

Two hours later Luke found himself pacing around the lilypad waiting for his mother to show up. He wished that Reid was here to calm him down, but he knew that this was something that he had to face on his own. He took some calming breaths reminding himself that his mother loved him and wanted what was best for him. He started to relax when he realized that he was a grown up and that his happiness was important to his mother.

Finally, Lily walked into the house with two large carry-out bags.

"Hey Luke, sorry I'm late," Lily said, smiling at her eldest son. "Will you help me put out the food?"

"Sure Mom," he said, reaching for the bags and setting them on the counter. He got the plates out of the cupboards and started setting the table, then he took the food out of the containers and put it on serving dishes. Lily got drinks for the two of them and they settled down to have their lunch.

"So Mom, I have some news to share with you."

"You do?"

"Yes, I'm moving out," Luke began. "Reid and I have bought a house together and we'll be moving into it in three months. We just heard today that our offer was accepted."

Lily leaped up from the table and came over to hug him. "I'm so happy for you Baby. I knew that you and Noah would get back together. I'm so excited that you have bought a house together. I can't wait to tell the rest of the family the good news."

"Mom," Luke said sharply. "You're not listening to me."

Lily paled; Luke almost never used that tone with her. She hated to see Luke angry with anyone, but especially with her.

"I'm listening, Baby. I'm just so happy that you are back with Noah. I just know that he is your soul mate."

"Mom" Luke said through gritted teeth. "Noah and I are not together. We will never be together again. I'm with Reid. I love Reid and he loves me. I bought the house with Reid."

Lily was shocked. Her mouth kept opening and closing as she tried to accept what Luke was saying.

"Reid, Reid Oliver? You bought a house with him?" Lily finally managed to splutter out.

"Yes."

"Oh Honey, have you really thought this through?" she asked taking his hand.

Luke snatched his hand out of his mother's grasp. "Of course I've thought this through. Noah is not the right person for me. You have to let him go."

"Has Reid made you give up Noah? Has he asked you to cut Noah out of your life? I don't think that it's fair for him to ask that of you."

"Mom, Reid didn't ask me to give up Noah, and I'm not asking you to cut him out of your life either. I know that you love him, I'm just asking you to accept that Noah is not the right person for me."

"Why not, Luke? He's such a warm and caring person. He's so polite and kind. Reid is rude and sarcastic. Reid is handsome but so is Noah and you and Noah have so much history. Reid is very accomplished in his career, are you sure that he is really interested in you?"

"Thanks, Mom. First of all Reid loves me. I know that he does because he tells me and because of how he treats me. He respects me. He makes me feel good about myself. Reid accepts me, all of me, for who I am. Noah always wanted to change me. Yes he's polite and caring and warm and I really loved him. I still love him, but only as a friend. He never really respected me and that caused me to have enormous self doubt. He blamed me for everything that went wrong in our relationship and he always pushed me away. He blamed me for his blindness. You know how guilty I felt about that. Reid is the one who made me realize that it was an accident and not my fault. Reid is the one person who is always on my side. That doesn't mean that he always agrees with me, far from it. We bicker all the time. He calls me on my crap and he listens to me when I call him on his."

"Luke, I had no idea that you were so unhappy with Noah. You two always seemed so perfect for each other. You kind of reminded me of Holden and me. Reid is just so… different."

"He _is _different, Mom. I know that you and Dad love each other, but I don't want that kind of relationship," Luke paused as he noticed the stricken look on his mother's face. "I'm not judging you or Dad; it's just that I don't need the kind of drama that you two seem to crave. I understand why you thought that Noah and I resembled your relationship, because it was filled with drama and break-ups. Reid is stable, I know that he always tells me the truth and I know that he will always be faithful to me. That's what I need to be happy."

"Are you sure? It sounds kind of…boring to me," Lily answered, uncertainly.

Luke laughed, "Mom, it's not boring, it's just different from what you are used to. Reid makes me happy, very happy. Please try to get along with him. He's not Noah, but if you give him a chance I think that you will be able to see how great he is."

Lily hugged Luke. "You seem all grown up to me. When did that happen? I can see now how important Reid is to you, so of course I will give him a chance. I can't say that I really understand what you see in him, but I can tell that he makes you happy and that's all that matters."

"Thanks Mom."

Luke called Reid as soon as he left Lily's to go to the farm to tell his father about his upcoming living arrangements.

"Hi Luke, are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine. Mom took the news better than I thought she would."

"She didn't tell you to move in with Noah instead?"

Luke paused, "well at first that's who she thought I was moving in with, but I explained in great detail that I am with you and will never be with Noah again."

"Aw… and just how disappointed is she about this choice of yours."

"Reid, she's not disappointed, she's just kind of confused. I'm pretty sure that she's not going to try and get Noah and me back together anymore, so that's a plus, also she promised to make an effort with you. So you've been warned," Luke teased.

"Great," Reid replied sarcastically, as he wondered what "effort" Lily was going to put forth. "I'm glad that you're happy with how everything turned out," Reid added sincerely.

"Yeah, I'm just heading out to the farm to tell my dad. I know that he'll be happy for us," Luke said smiling into the phone.

"Great, well I'll see you later."

"Bye"

Five minutes later Luke found his father in the kitchen at the farm.

"Hi Luke, your mom just called and said that you had some news."

"Yeah, I do," Luke answered grinning, trust his mom to steal his thunder. "Did she tell what it is?"

"No," Holden smiled, remembering how he had cut Lily off so that he could hear the news directly from his son.

"Reid and I have bought a house together."

"That's a big step, Luke. I'm happy for you two, but are you sure you aren't moving too quickly?"

Luke gaped at his father, surprised by the question.

"Yes Dad, I'm sure that we aren't moving too quickly. I love him Dad and I know that he loves me back. I've never felt more sure of anything in my entire life. I can't wait to share a home with him."

Holden grabbed his son and hugged him tightly, "I'm so happy for you, Luke. I don't really understand your relationship, but I know that he makes you happy and that's all that matters to me. How did your mom take the news?"

"Surprisingly well, she even promised to try and get along with Reid."

"I'm sure that she will. Your happiness is what's important to her and that's what she will focus on."

"Thanks Dad."

"Hey do you have time to help me with some chores? I've missed you and I would like to spend some time with you. You can tell me all about the great Dr. Oliver."

"Sure Dad, just let me go upstairs and get changed into some old clothes."

Holden and Luke spent the rest of the day hanging out and working with the horses, Luke's favourite farm chores to do, and talking about Reid. It was a great day for both of them. Finally it was time for Luke to shower and change in order to get ready for his date with Reid.

At 8:00 sharp Luke arrived at Reid's office to take him out for their celebration dinner.

"Wow, you look amazing Reid," Luke said after kissing him hello. He couldn't believe that Reid had put on a suit for him.

"Yeah, well it's not everyday you get to celebrate buying a new house," Reid shrugged.

Luke just laughed, pleased that Reid would make such an effort for him.

"Come on, let's go before they cancel our reservation," Reid said taking Luke's hand and leading him out of the hospital.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N Well here it is the last chapter, I'm kind of sad to see it end and kind of relieved that it's done. Thank-you to everyone who has read and reviewed this along the way, your words of encouragement have been greatly appreciated. To those of you who have favourited this story I am beyond flattered, so thank-you very much. To those of you who have just read it, I hope that you have enjoyed at least part of this journey. I hope that you all like how I've ended it. Please let me know what you think. Thanks again!**

Three months went by incredibly quickly. When they had first bought the house Luke had wanted to move into it that very day and the three month wait had seemed to stretch out forever, but now that it was almost time to move in, he began to feel incredibly nervous.

He wasn't nervous about living with Reid, he was dying to live with Reid. Just thinking about it made him feel like a grown-up. He wasn't worried that he didn't love Reid enough; he seemed to love Reid more each day. He also wasn't worried that Reid didn't love him enough; Reid always made him feel loved and safe, more secure than anyone had ever made him feel.

Luke was worried because the love that he and Reid shared was so easy. He had witnessed the epic love of his parents that was so different from his own. His parents were always experiencing one drama or another. With Reid there were misunderstandings, but they talked them through and they were all quickly resolved. This was not how his parents behaved at all. They had secrets and lies between them which led to break-ups and divorces followed by the inevitable make-ups and remarriages, Luke found the whole cycle exhausting.

Luke sighed and worried that he was being ridiculous. He decided to ignore his fears for the moment and focus on what may well become a huge disaster. Lily had insisted on throwing a party for Reid and him. Ostensibly to celebrate the big move into their new home. While Luke knew that his mother was trying to make an effort with Reid, he also knew that a social gathering with all of the Snyder's was not likely to be the way to Reid's heart. Luckily Reid had agreed to come to this shin dig, when Luke had promised him that the party would be catered by Al's.

Lily had wanted to have fancy food, prepared by the chef at the Lakeview, but Luke convinced her that both he and Reid would prefer that the food be from Al's. Luke could be very persuasive when necessary and Lily had capitulated. The party was to start at 8 and Luke was picking Reid up at the hospital at 7:30 so that they would arrive together.

Luke decided that he had better get ready, the last thing he wanted was to keep Reid waiting. Luke sighed one last time and headed for the shower.

He had already chosen his clothes for the evening, a black cotton sweater and a pair of tight, but not too tight, black jeans. He looked at his clothes, which were lying, pressed and ready, for him on the bed and wondered if the ensemble was too black. He sighed and went back to his closet and pulled out a maroon sweater to wear instead.

When he was finally dressed, he put some gel into his hair and played with it until he had styled it just the way that Reid seemed to like it best. He took one last look in the mirror, satisfied with his appearance, when he suddenly wondered if Reid was going to be wearing his favourite maroon check shirt.

"Crap," Luke said aloud as he reached into his closet for a hunter green polo shirt. He looked at his watch and realized that he didn't have time to change and fix his hair, so he just grabbed the shirt and took it with him, just in case he needed to change.

Luke went downstairs and cringed a little when he noticed all of the decorations that Lily had put up for this "little" celebration. He hoped that Reid would survive this evening of inevitable small talk.

Luke drove the short distance to Memorial, found a parking spot and went to find Reid. Luke bumped into Ali at the nurse's station and stopped to say hello to her. Sensing that she was nervous about something, he probed her for information.

"What's up Ali? Is something bothering you?"

"Uh…well, I'm not sure quite how to tell you this, Luke," Ali hedged.

"Oh my God, has something happened to Reid? Is he okay?" Luke asked suddenly feeling panic rise from his stomach.

"No Luke, Reid is fine. This has nothing to do with Reid," Ali snapped a little more harshly than she had planned. 'Why was Luke so concerned about him anyway? She knew that they were together, but surely this was just a passing phase. Reid was so rude and unpleasant, she really couldn't fathom what Luke saw in him at all.'

"Ali, earth to Ali, what did you want to tell me?" Luke prompted Ali out of here reverie.

"Oh," Ali replied, startled out of her own thoughts. "This is about Noah," she said as gently as she could.

Luke sighed, heavily. "What about Noah?" Luke asked not really sure if he wanted to hear this or not.

"He moved to California last week after receiving the green light to work on his film. He mentioned that you two had a big blow out and that he hadn't told you that he was leaving. He seemed really sad about it, Luke. I have all of his contact information for you, as I'm sure that you would like to patch things up with him," she finished with a big encouraging smile on her face.

Luke just gaped at her. "I'm with Reid, Ali. There is nothing for me to patch up with Noah. I hope that he's happy in California and that his film project goes well, but I am not in any hurry to get in touch with him. I would like to be friends with him, but he will have to make the first move and he will have to accept my relationship with Reid before we could ever renew our friendship," Luke answered firmly.

"Okay Luke," she replied uncertainly. "I'm going to keep in touch with him, so just let me know if you change your mind. You guys were so great together, please don't forget that."

"Ali, you're my friend and I care about you, but Noah and I weren't really right for each other. I'm much happier with Reid than I ever was with Noah," Luke paused when he saw the look of sheer disbelief on Ali's face. "You're going to have to trust that I know what and who is best for me. Reid is who is best for me," Luke finished in a tone that left no room for questions from Ali.

Ali nodded, slightly taken aback by how sure of himself Luke seemed. If she was honest with herself, she had to admit that he seemed more confident now than he ever had while he was with Noah. Perhaps Reid was good for him. "I'm happy if you're happy," she smiled at him and then gave him a hug. "I'll see you tonight at the party," she called after him as he walked away toward Reid's office.

Luke knocked quietly on Reid's door and walked right in.

"What's the point of knocking if you don't wait for a response?" Reid asked huffily, but with a big smile on his face to show that he was happy to see Luke.

"It's like a five second warning, so that you can at least have a chance to cover up any nefarious dealings," Luke smiled back.

"Nefarious dealings huh, I'll keep that in mind."

Luke smiled at Reid and leaned over and kissed him squarely on the lips. Reid immediately responded running his tongue along Luke's lower lip before pushing it inside Luke's warm, wet mouth. Luke's tongue began tangling with Reid's, getting lost in the sensations. Reid's hands began to travel slowly down Luke's torso, gently lifting up the hem of Luke's sweater in order to gain access to Luke's soft skin. Reid loved touching Luke's skin; it was always so warm and inviting.

Reid's hands were toying with the waistband on Luke's jeans, reaching for the button when Luke's hand suddenly grasped Reid's halting his progress. Reid broke the kiss and looked at Luke waiting for an answer.

"We can't do this right now, Reid," Luke said with regret.

"Why not? You seem up for it, Luke," Reid smirked.

"You know why not, Reid. I don't want to be late for the party."

"Isn't the party for us? How could we possibly late, it can't start without us," Reid argued.

"Come on, Reid we have to get going. By the way I have some good news about the party."

"It's been cancelled, but we need to go and eat all of the delicious food by ourselves?" Reid asked hopefully.

"I said good news, not fantastic news, so no the party is still very much on," Luke said with a smile. "Noah won't be at the party, he's moved to LA to work on his movie."

"Noah's gone? When did he leave? How long is he gone for?"

Luke laughed. "I don't know any of the particulars. Noah didn't even tell me that he was leaving, Ali just told me."

"Are you okay? Did you want to phone him and see how he's doing?"

"No, not right now, he didn't bother to tell me that he was going and I am sick and tired of begging for Noah's attention, I would like to be friends , but that's up to him.  
Ali offered me his contact information, but I don't want to be the one to reach out to him. He has all of my info so he can call me if he wants to."

Reid hugged Luke awkwardly, not knowing exactly what to do. He knew that Luke was probably hurting once again thanks to Mr. Mayer, but Reid was secretly relieved that Noah had left town. He just didn't want Luke to be sad; he hated to see Luke hurt in any way.

Luke pulled away, smiling at Reid. "Thanks," he said, "I'm fine," and he meant it. Luke didn't want to admit it out loud, but he was secretly pleased that Noah had left town and was in no hurry to see him again.

Luke kissed Reid one more time and then said, "grab your jacket and lets get going, before my mom sends out a search party for us."

Reid just chuckled and put on his jacket and took Luke's hand and followed the younger man to his car.

Once the two men reached Luke's car the first thing Reid noticed was the green polo shirt hanging up in the back seat.

"Why do you have an extra shirt in your car, Luke?"

"Well…uh…I thought that you might be wearing your burgundy checked shirt and I didn't want to be all matchy matchy with you, so I had a back-up plan," Luke admitted sheepishly.

"You are such a girl, Luke," Reid replied running his hand through Luke's hair affectionately.

Luke blushed.

They drove to Lily's house in companionable silence after that, both of them lost in their own thoughts.

Moments later they arrived at the party. Reid started to pale as he saw the sheer number of cars that were in the driveway.

"How many people did your mother invite to this "little" get together?" Reid asked starting to feel nauseous at the thought of having to socialize with so many people.

"I don't know, I was afraid to ask," Luke replied. "Don't worry I'll stay with you the entire night and make sure that you have easy access to all of the food," Luke said grinning at Reid.

Reid smiled back weakly at Luke. "You had better protect me from the hoards of people in there who are going to want to bore me to death with small talk."

"Relax, I'll save you."

Reid suddenly grew serious. "Luke, I know that it's important to you that I get along with all of your family, especially your mother, and I want you to know that I will do my best to make that happen."

Luke kissed Reid, trying to convey to him how much his efforts were appreciated; just then Lily opened the door to welcome them in. "Look everybody it's Luke and Reid," Lily announced before looking at the two men and realizing that they were making out in front of all of their guests.

Reid was the first to be aware that the two now had an audience and broke the kiss hoping that he hadn't embarrassed Luke in front of his friends and family.

Luke just smiled and held Reid's hand and entered the house.

"Why are they always making out?" Lily muttered to herself. "Noah was always so respectful," she contined under her breath.

Luke heard her and spun around, "Noah wasn't respectful, he just never really wanted to touch me, especially in public, and he always made me feel unwanted. Reid makes me feel loved and special and if you are uncomfortable with that then that is your problem, not ours," Luke stated, glaring at his mother.

Lily glared at Reid and was about to accuse him of corrupting her son, but thought better of it when she noticed Reid squeeze Luke's hand and give him an encouraging smile.

In that moment Lily realized that Luke and Reid were truly in love and that if she insisted on interfering she risked losing her son forever.

Lily just smiled at the two men and welcomed Reid, as warmly as she could into her home.

"Reid thank-you for making Luke so happy, I hope that the two of you will be very happy in your new home."

Luke leaned over and kissed his mother on the cheek, while Reid managed to close his mouth and whisper his thanks to Lily, despite his shock.

"Why don't we get you some food? You must be starving," Luke suggested.

Reid just nodded and allowed himself to be led out to the food.

The rest of the party was remarkably painless for Reid, yes people tried to engage him in mindless small talk but it wasn't so bad as Luke was beside him the whole time holding his hand so that Reid was able to focus on that and tune the annoying people out. He noticed that no one was glaring at him and he realized it was because Luke was there answering all of their inane questions thereby including Reid, but not really requiring his presence.

The food was incredible which helped keep Reid's spirits up immeasurably. For his part, Luke thought the night went very well. Everyone seemed to accept that he and Reid were together and wished them well in their new home. A few people asked about Noah, and Luke was happy to tell them that Noah had moved to LA to pursue his dream of becoming a successful director.

Finally when the party was over and the last guests had left, Reid leaned over to kiss Luke goodnight and then remembered that he didn't have his car there, as Luke had driven.

"Can you drive me back to the hospital so that I can pick up my car?" Reid asked.

"Why don't you just stay here tonight, and we'll pick up your car tomorrow morning before we begin the big move?"

"Okay," Reid replied, wondering where he was going to sleep.

Luke immediately dragged Reid over to where Lily was standing. "Thanks for the party, Mom, we both really enjoyed it," Luke said and Reid nodded in agreement.

"You're welcome, Baby," Lily replied smiling at both men before leaning over and hugging first Luke, and then Reid.

Reid hugged Lily back, feeling very awkward at this gesture, and wondered briefly if he had preferred her hating him.

When the hug ended, Reid looked over at Luke, who was beaming and Reid knew that he was doomed to receive many more hugs from many more Snyders in the years to come. He sighed to himself, knowing that seeing that smile on Luke's face made it worth it.

"Reid's going to spend the night here, okay?"

"Sure Honey, he can stay in the guest room. It's all made up and ready to go," Lily responded.

"That's okay, Mom. Reid will stay with me; he doesn't need the guest room."

"Oh, okay, well if you're sure," she responded looking at Luke to see if he would back down and do as she wished. When she noted the huge smile on Luke's face she knew that she had made the right decision. "Well, I'll see you both at breakfast. I hope that you both have a good sleep."

"Thanks Lily, good night," Reid said before following Luke upstairs to his room.

As the two men got ready for bed, Luke couldn't help but smile at how happy he was to have Reid here with him. He was so relieved that his mother seemed to finally understand that Noah was his past and that Reid was his future.

"Uh…Luke, do you have a toothbrush that I can use?" Reid asked, praying that Luke wasn't going to offer to share his.

Luke opened a drawer and passed Reid a brand new toothbrush.

Reid took it and smiled his thanks at the other man.

Luke also offered Reid a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt to sleep in.

As the two lay in bed, in the dark, Luke's earlier concerns started to creep back into his mind.

"Reid, do you think that we are doing the right thing?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Us, moving in together, do you think that we're doing the right thing?"

Reid raised himself up on one elbow so that he could stare into Luke's eyes. He didn't like the doubt he saw swirling around in the dark orbs.

Reid moved his free hand to gently caress Luke's face as well as to hold in place so that Luke was forced to look at him.

"Yes, I think that we're doing the right thing. What are you worried about?"

Luke sighed, wishing that he hadn't said anything.

"Come on, please tell me. I don't want you fretting about anything. If you've changed your mind and you don't want to live with me, then please just tell me."

Luke looked shocked. "Of course I want to live with you, I'm just scared that you are going to realize that you've made a huge mistake by living with me," Luke replied in a small voice.

Reid leaned over and kissed Luke trying to convey how deeply committed to Luke he truly was.

When Reid broke the kiss they were both feeling a little bit breathless.

"I love you, Luke. I suspect that living with you will turn out to be the best decision of my life. I wish you knew how truly incredible you are, except then you would probably find someone who was easier to get along with than me."

"Easier than you? I don't think so. If anything I worry that you are too easy to love."

Reid laughed out loud at that. "Luke you are the only one who has ever called me easy to love. I'm grumpy, controlling and as much as I hate to admit it I know that I will let you down by forgetting your birthday, our anniversary and many other important dates. Everybody loves you, Luke and you make time for everyone. I'm not like that. I don't really like people, and I hate social gatherings."

"Anniversary? What anniversary?"

"Well, I thought that you might consider tomorrow our anniversary as we are moving in together. We are still moving in together, right?" Reid hated that he could hear the pleading tone in his own voice.

"Yes, if you're sure," Luke said quietly. "I just worry because you are so straight forward and honest with me all of the time."

"Isn't that a good thing? I mean I know that I can be blunt and that I probably hurt your feelings sometimes, but would you really want me to lie to you, because I don't think that I can do that," Reid responded starting to feel nervous.

"No, no of course I don't want you to lie to me. It's just that we always manage to resolve our issues, really quickly. We don't have a lot of drama between us. My parents have always had drama, usually because one or the other gets bored and they sleep with someone else in order to spice things up. I don't ever want to be with anyone but you and you don't seem to want to cheat on me either. I don't think I could take it if you cheated on me. I don't know why my parents are on this endless cycle of break-ups and make-ups, I don't want to repeat that cycle, but they always talk about how epic their love is and so there is a part of me that feels like I should want that. Looking back I think that that's why I put up with all of Noah's crap. He kept breaking up with me and that just seemed to reinforce that we were in love. How screwed up is that?

"With you everything is so much calmer. You just seem to accept me for who I am and you put up with all of my flaws effortlessly, I guess that I'm just scared that you are going to figure out that you could do much better than me," Luke concluded.

"Luke, do you really want all of the crazy drama in your life that your parents have? I don't. You are way too hard on yourself, Luke. You're not nearly as flawed as you seem to think that you are. I love you, all of you, Luke; there is no one better than you, so please stop torturing yourself with those thoughts. I would never cheat on you, Luke and I expect the same from you. Before I met you, I didn't know that what we have existed. You make me feel whole in a way I never have before, and I don't want to give that up. So please just accept that I love you and that you are stuck with me, okay?"

"Yes!" Luke responded, reaching over to kiss Reid. "I love you, too, all of you."

Luke stared at Reid for a moment, marvelling at how lucky he was to be loved by this incredible man.

"Thanks," Luke whispered.

"For what?" Reid asked.

"For listening to me, not laughing at me and for giving me exactly what I needed."

Reid smiled at Luke and began touching the younger man. "I think that you may need something else, Mr. Snyder, to relax you and help you sleep. After all we have a big day tomorrow and I feel it is my job to see that you get a good night's sleep."

"I think that you might be right," Luke replied earnestly.

With that Reid began to show Luke, just how much he was loved and of course Luke reciprocated.


End file.
